


Secrets of the Lost Kingdom

by TrashcanKitty



Series: The New Company of Light [18]
Category: Winx Club
Genre: (to a point), AU, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, F/M, Mentions of Death, Mostly witch centric, Multi, Obsessive Behavior, Other, Slightly - Freeform, Some Fluff, Though Slightly canon compliant, Very AU, mentions of past traumas, senior year difficulties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-03-03
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:01:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 50,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22798252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrashcanKitty/pseuds/TrashcanKitty
Summary: Valkyrie and the others promised to help Bloom find Marion and Oritel and save Domino. No one realized just how difficult such a feat might actually be.But Valkyrie's not giving up. She owes the fairy her "real life" back. (Even if her Dragon tells her its not her fault that Domino died, even though she wasn't responsible for what happened. She's going to fix it. Somehow.)And of course, there's resistance. Namely from a witch who seems hell-bent on destroying everything and everyone.
Relationships: Aisha | Layla/Nabu (Winx Club), Bloom/Sky (Winx Club), Brandon/Stella (Winx Club), Flora/OC, Helia/OC, Lucy/Mirta (Winx Club), Musa/Riven (Winx Club), OC/OC, Tecna/Timmy (Winx Club), others
Series: The New Company of Light [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1362700
Comments: 9
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter One: Last First Day

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my tumblr if you have any questions or just want to chat. There may be some things there that could answer what happens here. Thank you!
> 
> (Tumblr handle is trashcankitty12.)

  1. **Last First Day**



Her side of the room had been set up. Her bed was made (and currently occupied by one lounging tuxedo cat), her clothes put away into the wardrobe, her desk prepared for classes, and her posters and pictures were set up along her walls and desk.

She’d gotten to Cloud Tower early to set up her dorm room, not wanting to bump into the lower classmen just yet. (She’d seen the chat room forums on Cloud Tower’s site and on Witchypedia’s Up and Coming posts. So much misplaced hero worship…)

It was weird though, being at CT before Crystal had even arrived, before Lucy had slipped in. But it gave her time to catch her breath and gather her nerves.

_She’d killed Valtor and Darkar. She’d helped stop the Trix sisters. She’d done good things… Saved the Magical Dimension. But she felt so lousy…_

Valkyrie sat on the carpeted floor, crossing her legs and closing her eyes. (Focus. She just needed to focus and pull herself together.)

 _‘You shouldn’t worry. Your conscious is clear._ ’ Her dragon hummed to her. Valkyrie snorted.

‘ _I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about the unwarranted attention. Stella and Crystal may thrive on it, but I can’t stand it._ ’

‘ _You’ll have to learn to deal with it, Witchling. Otherwise you’ll find yourself falling into a deeper rabbit hole._ ’

‘ _Listen he-’_ She started, eyes jerking open when the door began to creak.

Valkyrie relaxed her body, moving to stand up in greeting as Crystal and Patches filed into the room, bags flying around them and landing near Crystal’s side of the room. “I guess you really did come in early, huh?” The brunette teased, pulling Valkyrie into a hug.

The smaller witch chuckled, wrapping her arms around her friend. “Yeah… I still don’t really want to face the crowd…”

Crystal released her, a frown contorting her normally friendly(ish) face. She crossed her arms, looking Valkyrie up and down. “Still that bad, huh?”

“I’m working through it.” Valkyrie shrugged, sitting on her bed, one leg hanging off. Cheshire rose up, moving to curl closer to his witch for head scratching.

The gem witch rolled her eyes, making her way toward her side of the room. A little hand waving and a few well-placed words was all it took. Her bags opened up, clothes making their way into her dressers, her bed making itself up, and her desk prepared for the coming classes.

Her gems and crystals decorated her shelves and walls, pictures and posters were set up on her walls and desk. Crystal grinned, turning on her heels to face Valkyrie, giving a bow.

Valkyrie chuckled, shaking her head. “Seriously, you still make a performance of setting up?”

“It’s part of the fun.” Crystal laughed, walking over to Patches and scooping the calico into her arms. “So, when is Lucy supposed to show up?”

“Don’t know. I just know she’ll be in before orientation…” Valkyrie frowned, pulling her legs to her chest. “She’s been having a rough time sleeping lately… Did she tell you?”

Crystal sighed, leaning against her wardrobe. “Yeah.” She shook her head. “Her nightmares sound pretty intense too, like some of the ones you’ve had.”

“I hope she’s okay.”

“She will be. She’s pretty tough.” Crystal gave a wink, her green eyes lighting up. “And of course Mirta makes her stronger.”

Valkyrie chuckled, placing a dramatic hand over her heart. “Ah love.”

“And speaking of love, do you think we could talk Kota and Flora into another double date? Our last one went soo well…” Crystal paused. “Actually, maybe we should do a triple date and invite Mirta and Lucy…?”

With a raised eyebrow and smirk, “You sure you two could handle being the only straight-passing couple?” Valkyrie teased.

Crystal shot her a look, stroking Patches’ fur. “You’re just jealous Kota asked me out first.” Valkyrie snorted.

“Yep. That’s totally it.”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They’d been going over their class schedules when Lucy showed up, barging into their room as if it was hers too. “I don’t know how, but your nightmares have become contagious Valkyrie.” Lucy greeted, arms crossed and fake-glaring at the purple-haired witch.

Valkyrie shrugged, propping her head up on her hands. “It’s a side effect of working so closely with me. My apologies.” Valkyrie feigned a pout and sympathy.

Lucy shook her head. “Can I divorce my coven? Because I’m considering it now.” She deadpanned, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Cheshire and Patches sashayed over to Lucy, rubbing against her legs as if to comfort her. Lucy bent down, rubbing her hands over their fur, giving a slight hum.

Crystal and Valkyrie made their way over to Lucy, sitting in the floor near her and the cats. “Tell us about the nightmares.”

“Yeah… Maybe there’s something we can do to ease your mind enough that they’ll no longer have power…? Or a potion we could brew…”

Lucy shrugged, green strands of hair falling into her face. “It’s… Weird. It starts out as a good day on my home realm… And then the insects start panicking and attacking us. I mean full-on insect assault. And no matter what we do or how hard we fight or how much we try to connect to them, they ignore us and just try harder to fight us.”

She swallowed, shaking her head. “I always wake up right before one of the gigalets eats me…” Valkyrie and Crystal shared a look before turning to Lucy, bringing the lanky witch into a hug. (Okay, more like a cuddle pile, but who had to know?)

“Don’t worry Luce… We’ve got your back.” Valkyrie gave a smile.

“And we’ll find a way to stop those nightmares.”

“I’m sure there’s a potion you could try. Or maybe aromagic therapy? That works for me.” Valkyrie admitted.

Lucy snorted. “That’s not what works for you, it’s _who_ administers the therapy that works for you.” Valkyrie flushed.

“Go to Hell.”

“Maybe later.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie took a deep breath, glancing at herself in the mirror. Short purple hair ruffled up just a bit (thanks to Crystal), black-framed glasses, navy tank top with black sigils (courage and wisdom), the dragon totem, blue jean shorts, and her trusty sneakers.

“I can’t believe you’re still wearing that thing.” Crystal gestured to the necklace. “Its from _him_.” Valkyrie sighed, her fingers going to clasp the dragon totem.

‘ _It was never truly his. It’s mine. And now I and the totem are yours._ ’

“Look… It’s something my dragon is really attached to and I’d rather be cohesive with him.” Valkyrie explained, looking toward her friend.

Crystal had her brunette hair pulled into a short pony-tail, an off-the shoulder forest green shirt hugging to her figure, a slight flared red skirt and black leggings, boots setting off her already tall stature to even higher grounds. “If you say so…” She wrapped her arm around Valkyrie. “You ready to head to orientation?”

“As I’ll ever be.” Valkyrie hummed. “It’s weird… Thinking about how this will be our last orientation at CT.”

“Unless we do the graduate programs…” Crystal hummed. “Though I’m not sure if I’d do it or not…”

“I’m not either if I’m honest… We’ll see how this year pans out.” Valkyrie grabbed the door knob. “Let’s collect Lucy and head down…”

They opened the door, grinning when they found Lucy had been about to reach for their door. “Glad you’re ready. We were worried about having to grab you.”

Lucy rolled her eyes leaning against the wall as dramatically as possible. Her green hair was braided back. She wore a tan shirt with web designs, low-riding jeans, and black combat boots. “Come on, before Ms. Griffin gets started.”

“Or sends Zarathustra after us.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie fought to keep her cool, avoiding the looks and stares from the freshmen and sophomores, the grins from the juniors, and even the smug looks from her own classmates.

She could hear the whispers, the theories about her summer, the deafening sounds of their murmurs. She just wanted them to quieten down, to leave her be.

But Crystal loved it and even made her way to the crowd of lower classmen, answering questions and giving tips about everything from gemstone abilities to makeup and fashion.

And Lucy found herself swayed by the adoration of the younger witches, answering their questions as best as she could.

Valkyrie crept up the bleachers to the senior seats as best as she could, trying to avoid eye contact. But even once she was seated, she could feel the gaze on her, could hear the whispers.

“Must be hard being a savior.” Hecate teased from behind her, delicate hands teasing her hair. Valkyrie rolled her eyes.

“I’m no savior.”

“Says you. But the entire dimension has seen and heard otherwise.” Hecate gave a wicked grin, showing her slightly sharper teeth. (Gelihads had sharper teeth and nails than most inhabitants of the Magical Dimension.)

Valkyrie frowned. “It’s not like I did it alone.”

“Which is why Crystal and Lucy are being pulled into interviews and why I’m certain those Alfea fairies you hang around are getting mauled by fangirls. Though I’m sure Princess Stella _loves_ the attention.”

“Oh, she definitely does.” Lunilla snickered. “Solaria has been all over her. Even got on one of our talk shows.”

Valkyrie groaned, shaking her head. “Look… I just want to graduate without any problems this year… Is that too much to ask?”

Hecate placed a hand on Valkyrie’s shoulder, a show of sympathy from the normally haughty witch. “Sorry dear, but nothing is ever so simple. Especially not when the Dragon Fire is concerned.” She pointed one of her pointed nails toward Valkyrie’s necklace.

“But if it makes you feel better, I’m not going easy on you in class.” Hecate winked, leaning back in her seat.

“You do realize that even fighting with our full power, stopping anyone with the Dragon Fire without another form of primordial magic only has a 3% success rate, right?” Rubis piped up from beside Valkyrie.

Hecate rolled her eyes. “Zenithians...” She muttered, shaking her head.

Valkyrie shot Rubis a smile. “Thanks.” She noticed the tech witch’s book. “ _Eternal Entities and the Codes for Which They Live_?”

Rubis shrugged. “It’s got great information on technological advances the Magical Dimension was able to discover with assistance from the Deities. Both major and minor.”

“Major being the Dragons?”

“And the Water Stars.” Rubis hummed. “What happened to the Water Stars anyway…? I mean… After what happened with Valtor?”

Valkyrie took a deep breath, forcing herself not to react. “I don’t know. Flora took them back to Headmistress Faragonda. They’re probably hidden somewhere.”

“Probably for the best.” Rubis looked to Valkyrie. “You doing okay?”

“I’m doing.” Valkyrie gave a smile, the smile becoming real after she heard Lucy and Crystal scrambling into their seats beside her.

“Sorry.”

“We had a f-”

“A few fans to service?” Valkyrie taunted, giving a smirk. Crystal and Lucy pouted.

“Bitch.”

“No support whatsoever from you.”

Valkyrie was going to retort when she noticed the other witches quieting down, her mother walking toward the podium.

“Welcome back to Cloud Tower, ladies. Here’s hoping this year won’t be as… Disruptive as the past few years have been.” Griffin started, looking to her fellow teachers.

“Now, I’d like to take a quick moment to introduce our newest addition to the Cloud Tower Staff, Professor Talia Hildegard. She will be our new instructor in our meteorology magic and environmental magic.” She waved her hand toward the newest teacher among the ranks.

Professor Hildegard seemed like a true witch. Back straight, head high, a smirk more than a smile as she waved in greeting to the students.

She wore a white ruffled blouse with a blood-red tie, a blood-red skirt, and had her blonde hair tied back in a bun.

“We are thrilled to have her here and I hope you learn from her, especially you weather and natural based witches.” Griffin took a breath, starting up on class schedules, dorm rules, safety procedures, and of course, the ‘prank war’ between Alfea and Cloud Tower and the rules that followed along with the rivalry.

Meal times and curfew were discussed, office hours given, and directions to the infirmary were given.

Which monsters were friendly and which to avoid that lived in CT’s halls, punishments for misbehavior, and a few of school programs were discussed.

And of course, the grand finale, the orientation of the freshmen…

(All in all, a wonderfully normal day.)


	2. Chapter Two: Senior Worries

  1. **Senior Worries**



Valkyrie took a sip of her milkshake, trying to focus on her friends as they laughed and joked and talked about the upcoming back to school dance.

Normally she’d be excited, it was a chance to see Flora (and give smug looks to certain specialists and witches who’d lost out on the incredible fairy). But things seemed distant this time around, less important.

 _‘You’ve seen things most teenagers don’t. You’ve grown in ways most of your peers have not. But do try to remember, you’re still a child, yet._ ’ Her dragon warned her.

She frowned, chewing on her straw. Valkyrie knew how old she was, how young. She knew her life hadn’t been ‘normal’. But there was still so much to consider, so much that was far more important than a high school dance.

“Valkyrie, Magix to Valkyrie. Can you come in for us?” Lucy teased, waving her hand in front of Valkyrie’s face.

The smaller witch scowled and leaned away, a flush coming to her face. “Sorry. I spaced.”

“We noticed. Want to tell us why?” Crystal asked, leaning her arms on the table. Lucy crossed her arms, studying her.

“Does it have to do with trying your current search history of all things Dominian?” Lucy asked. “Or our senior projects?”

Valkyrie sighed, feeling herself slump a little. “You’ll think it’s ridiculous…”

“Val, we’re your coven. If something is bothering you this bad, we need to know what it is.” Crystal reminded her, wagging her finger in a manner similar to how Professor Pandora did.

Taking a quick sip of her milkshake for courage, Valkyrie turned her focus to her friends. “It’s a little bit of everything… I’m weirded about by the hero worship the lower classmen have been showing, despite the fact you’d think I’d be used to it by now… And then there’s trying to help Bloom find Marion and Oritel… Wherever the hell they are.”

“Not to mention this is our last year as Cloud Tower witches. Our last year of high school… And I don’t know about the two of you, but I still have debating to do about my plans after this year…”

Crystal gave a smile, placing a hand on Valkyrie’s; Lucy followed suite. “Valkyrie. Don’t sweat it, okay? In another year, the hero worship thing will die down. Trust me.”

“And Bloom’s going to find her parents, one way or another. Or have you forgotten just how dedicated and tenacious that fairy is?” Lucy teased.

Their hands squeezed Valkyrie’s. “And just because this is our last year at CT doesn’t mean the adventures are ending. And it sure as hell doesn’t mean we have to have our shit figured out for the rest of our lives.”

“Yeah. I mean, we still have our senior projects to come up with.” Crystal groaned. “Which we should really be heading back to do…”

Valkyrie flushed. “I… Already sort of have an idea for my senior project.” Lucy glowered and Crystal swore.

“Of course you do! You’ve never been able to stop yourself from planning out your assignments ahead of time!” Crystal whined.

“Let me guess, you’ve known we were going to have this assignment for a while because you’re the headmistress’ daughter? Is that it?”

Valkyrie gave a sheepish smile. “It does have its perks…”

“And just what are you planning on doing for your senior project?” Crystal asked, crossing her arms. Lucy took a sip of her milkshake.

“This should be good.”

“I was thinking of researching the primordial powers and how we can apply them to our own magic…” Valkyrie told them, giving a shrug. “Nothing too major…”

“The… Primordial powers? Valkyrie there’s like five. And you have one of them. Isn’t that cheating?”

“Not really. Besides, it makes me the perfect test subject for experiments… Well, me and Bloom. I just…” She sighed, trying to figure out how to phrase her words. “The primordial powers may not be in their ‘proper’ forms anymore, but they’re still out there and their influence is still strongly noted.”

“Every magic user should be able to trace their magic essences back to the primordial powers. And, if my hunch is right, the more we trace our magic back and connect to those primordial powers, the stronger we get connected to our own magic and to ourselves. And while that may sound like a fairy thing to say, it’s a true statement and the applications we could use such a technique for are endless.”

Valkyrie paused. “Like for instance, Lucy, if you connected more with the primordial power over Spirit, think of how much easier it would be to connect with the insects around you. Or how powerful your spells could become. Not to mention you’d feel more connected to your magic and it would become more like an extension of yourself and not just a tool.”

The smaller witch flushed, noticing the looks her friends were giving her. “Sorry… That was a major tangent.”

“Yes, it was.” Crystal agreed, nodding her head. But she gave a smile, that little twinkle in her eyes. “But I’m glad to see you going on one again. Means you’re super excited about this.” She gave an approving hum. “Just… Be careful with your research… I’d hate to have to dig you out of the Nether somewhere.”

“And I’d hate having to explain why it was you got sent into the Nether in the first place.” Lucy teased, downing the rest of her milkshake. “Ooh…. What if for my project, I researched the divination properties of beetles?”

“Beetles?” Crystal asked, knitting her brows together. Valkyrie shrugged.

“It… sounds interesting.”

“Come on, guys! Have you never noticed how beetles seem to know when shit is going down before it ever goes down?” Lucy asked.

Crystal and Valkyrie shared a look.

“No.”

“Never paid much attention…”

Lucy groaned, laying her head down on the table. “No one recognizes the beetles anymore…”

Valkyrie patted Lucy on the back. “I’m sure we will once your research comes in…”

“Exactly. I bet it’ll be a fascinating topic.” Crystal grinned. Her smile soon fell though, and she let out a whine. “I have no idea what to do for my project…”

“You could do something on gemstones and their magic properties…?”

“Nope. Been done already. Centuries ago, in fact.” Crystal hummed. “And I can’t do anything with divination. We’re a coven but we don’t need to work on a project together, or look like we’re stealing from each other…”

She frowned, tapping her fingers against her glass. Valkyrie felt herself tense, watching as Crystal’s smile suddenly flashed on, as if a lightbulb went off.

“I’ve got it! What about the innerworkings of jewelry, gemstones, and magic? Like…. The Ring of Solaria? It’s made of sunstone and channels magic from the Second Sun of Solaria… Right? But _how_ does it work?” Crystal grinned. “A question I intend on answering. Later.”

Valkyrie and Lucy laughed, high-fiving Crystal. “Our senior projects are going to be awesome!”

“We’ll definitely be beating Janelle’s project from last year… I mean, who really cares about what potion ingredients actually bring to the potion and how they enhance the meanings?” Valkyrie shrugged.

Lucy and Crystal shot her a look. “Potionologists? Herbologists? Medical workers?”

Valkyrie flushed and looked away. “I’m not good with potions and everything about them makes me want to break out.”

Crystal shook her head, tsking. “Poor baby.”

“The baddest witch at Cloud Tower, scared of a few potions. For shame, Valkyrie.” Lucy did her best Ediltrude impression, scrunching her face up and shaking it slowly.

The girls burst out laughing, the tension having released.

“It’s getting late. We should start back so we don’t get curfew called before classes even start.” Lucy groaned.

Valkyrie sighed. “That would be our luck, wouldn’t it?”


	3. Chapter Three: Open Discussion

  1. **An Open Discussion**



_Entities and Primordial Beings Vol. 1-5_ , _Magic and its Sources_ , _Nymphs and Deities: A History of Magic_ , and _Forgotten Realms and Cultures_ were all being tucked away neatly into Valkyrie’s backpack, the old canvas bag starting to bulge at the books being stuffed inside.

Sure, it was going to be a lot of extra reading material, and it was going to mean many late nights, but she had to find out more about her magic. About her heritage and her dragon. (After all, he only told her so much and the only other people she could ask were dead… Aside from her mother who only knew bits and pieces of Obsidinite culture.)

She had to figure this shit out, preferably before Bloom decided to go off trying to find her parents all by herself. (Not that Valkyrie was one to talk about going off and doing potentially dangerous shit, but Bloom was… Important.)

The witch’s phone vibrated, a familiar name flashing across the screen as a text fired up. ‘At White Horse. Don’t be late. -Flora’ alongside a heart emoji. Valkyrie grinned, grabbing her bag and starting for the door of the book shop.

“Before you go, witchling… There is a warning attached to those tomes…” The shop keeper, an elderly woman with her hair tied into a braid, reminded her.

Valkyrie sighed. “Let me guess, be careful when reading any spells out loud because I may accidentally summon a demon from the Nether or Oblivion? Or perhaps I need to be wary of potentially being possessed?”

“Something tells me you’ve done your research on the books.” The woman gave a teasing smile. “Or you’ve heard it before?”

“Let’s just I’ve probably heard it all at this point.” Valkyrie bowed her head. “But I can assure you, I’ll be careful… I’m just… Researching.”

“That’s what your mother said too, before she was caught in their sway.” The woman warned, her knowing tone setting off warning bells in Valkyrie’s being.

She could feel the hairs on her neck standing up, her hands wanting to clench into fists. “Ma’am, I’m not my mother and I’m definitely not my father…” It was meant to be both a conversation ender and a vow.

Valkyrie had major respect for her mother, she admired the older witch and hoped to be just as strong, but she also knew her mother made mistakes, many mistakes… But that didn’t mean Valkyrie would repeat them.

The woman gave a slow nod, gesturing for the door. “Just be careful, young witch…”

“I’m always careful.” Valkyrie remarked, starting back for the door.

‘ _Now that’s a bit of a stretch…_ ’ Her dragon snorted, his own being starting to settle down. She rolled her eyes, heading down Magi Street and 45th.

‘ _No one asked you._ ’ She retorted, keeping an eye for traffic as she made her way to the café. She didn’t want to leave Flora waiting too long…

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flora was already at ‘their’ table, a little corner area on the patio just outside the café. Long brown hair was braided back, a pink graphic t-shirt ( _Powered by Flowers_ in some scrawling text) and blue jeans were worn. Her signature pink sandals peeking out from under the hem of her jeans.

“I was beginning to wonder if I needed to go looking for you.” Flora teased, standing up to greet her with a hug and a quick peck. Valkyrie flashed her mega-watt smile.

“Sorry, I was finishing up at the bookstore…” They sat down, Valkyrie pulling out her book list. “I had to special order a few of them… But it’s going to be well worth it.”

Flora scanned the list, giving a hum. “This is for your senior project, right? Mirta said Lucy was getting a new tarot deck and astrology set for hers.”

Valkyrie chuckled, pushing back strands of her purple hair. “Yeah. The entire senior class is kind of scrambling to get a head start… Or at least, trying to gather a majority of their materials before the shops start swapping over to their Day of the Rose and Samhain stocks.”

Flora opened her mouth to speak when the waitress came out. “Are you two ready to order?” The woman asked, eyes gleaming and smile wide.

Recognition was written on her face. She knew who they were and was most likely going to attempt to give them special treatment. (Just as the majority of Magix had been trying to do since they got back from summer vacation…)

“I’ll have a lunch special, please? With hinale tea?” Flora asked, giving one of her warmer smiles. The waitress nodded.

“Of course, and you?”

“The same… But instead of the tea, could I have iced hot chocolate?” Valkyrie caught the teasing smile Flora was giving her and rolled her eyes. “Look, Lucy and Rubis swear by it and I figured I’d give it a try.”

“Don’t worry, we’ve had people with much stranger tastes. Your drinks will be in shortly and your food won’t be long.” The waitress bowed her head to them, biting at her lip before walking away.

Valkyrie sighed. “At least she didn’t ask questions…”

“You’ve been getting it too, huh? The ‘hero worship’ thing?” Flora asked, leaning up to take Valkyrie’s hand.

“Yep… And Crystal and Lucy are milking it. And I just… Wish it’d all fade away and something new would take their minds off of last year… You know?” Valkyrie squeezed her hand, shaking her head. “I don’t… Feel right being celebrated like that.”

“I know what you mean… But Stella is enjoying the attention and Musa’s been using to bring attention to her upcoming concerts…” Flora gave a bit of a laugh. “Even Tecna seems to be sort of enjoying it all.”

Valkyrie raised an eyebrow, her lips scrunching a bit. “Tecna? Enjoying extra attention?”

Flora gave a solemn nod. “It was weird to me too… But she’s thriving… Though I think it’s because most of the ones fawning over her are also big techies and they’re all swapping cartridges and computer programs.” She shrugged. “The rest of us are just sort of tolerating it.”

“Which is all we can really do.” Valkyrie gave a slight smile. “At least this year we’ll be able to relax a little…?”

“Hopefully.” Flora’s eyes lightened up. “Guess our food’s done. And it looks pretty good.”

Valkyrie turned to where Flora was facing a gave a low groan. “It does, doesn’t it?”

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie took a tentative sip of her drink, giving an appreciated smile. “So, Lucy and Rubis aren’t completely out of touch with reality. This is actually pretty good.” She handed the glass to Flora, letting her get a taste.

The fairy gave an excited hum, green eyes shining. “It is, isn’t it? Maybe there’s something to this iced hot chocolate craze…”

“I guess so.” Valkyrie laughed, taking her drink back. “Food’s pretty good too. Though that could just be because I’ve been craving fries.”

“Cravings do play a part in whether or not something’s good or amazing.” Flora teased. She paused for a moment, eyes looking away. Something was up.

“Flora, you’ve got that look again. The one where you look like a kicked puppy.” Valkyrie took Flora’s hands in hers, playing with the slender finger. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, per say, but… I’m just worried about Bloom. The school year hasn’t even started yet and she’s already obsessing over trying to find Oritel and Marion. Which I get, I mean, they’re her parents and she never got to meet them.”

“But Bloom tends to be brash and charge in head first when her emotions get clouded like this and I just don’t want her overworking herself or for her to push herself into heartbreak.” Flora squeezed Valkyrie’s hands, bringing them to her lips. “Do you have any idea where we could start? Just so we have a focal point?”

Valkyrie focused on the question, trying to willfully ignore Flora’s feather-light touch on her fingers. (Or how close they were to the fairy’s mouth…)

“She could try to talk to Concorda. The pixie _is_ psychic and should be able to sense something. Or maybe Alfea’s archives? Jolly?” Valkyrie offered. (Or…)

“Or she could be one of my experiments. Aside from me.” Flora shot her a scandalized look, releasing Valkyrie’s hands to cross her arms.

“Valkyrie, what are you working on that would require you to do experiments on yourself? And just how dangerous are these experiments? Do I need to be on call?” Flora questioned, concern and worry dripping into her voice.

The witch took her girlfriend’s hands, giving a reassuring squeeze paired with her brilliant smile. “I’m going to be okay, Flora. I promise I’ll be safe.” She leaned back, taking another sip of her drink before starting.

“I’m going to be researching primordial magic and how deep its connection is to every day magic. All magic is derived from these primordial sources, as we know, and I think if we can trace and reconnect ourselves to our own primordial power sources, we’ll be able to truly connect to our magic and to ourselves. I mean, our heritages and our magic. Maybe even our family histories…” Valkyrie bit her lip. “I know it’s a bit of a stretch, but I really think this could be something big…”

“Or it could be a way to completely lose yourself into the Nether or the primordials.” Flora warned. Valkyrie gave a sheepish smile.

“Which is why Bloom and I would make perfect test subjects. We’re already bound to primordial beings and we know they’re the source of our magic. So if we bonded and connected with our dragons more, we’d be able to create a bond with our magic that extends beyond it just being a tool. It’d be an extension of ourselves. And it could be the key in helping Bloom be able to trace her parents.”

Flora clasped her hands together and Valkyrie could just feel the fairy’s mind racing. “It’s actually not a bad idea.” She gave a defeated sigh and a smile, taking Valkyrie’s hand in hers again. “Just promise me you’ll be careful.”

“Always.” Valkyrie kissed her hand, watching as Flora’s face flushed.

“And I’ll tell Bloom what you’re working on… I’m sure she’ll let you know if she’s up for it.” Flora promised. Valkyrie grinned.

“Thank you.” She kept her hold on Flora. “You know, if I’m right, those of us with magic will be able to connect to ourselves in a whole new way? We’ll be able to truly appreciate our magic on a high scale and see it more as a part of us.”

“If you’re right, that sounds lovely.” Flora grinned. “And I do hope you’re right… Because if you’re wrong… You could really hurt yourself or Bloom.” Her smile dropped, replaced with a frown. “And I honestly don’t know if the rest of us could handle that.”

“We’ll be safe. I promise.”

It was more like a vow. Valkyrie wasn’t going to let Flora fret over her and Bloom, not like that. Not if she could help it.


	4. Chapter Five: Last First Dance

  1. **The Last First Dance**



Valkyrie shook her head, watching as Lucy and Crystal put the finishing touches of their outfits together. “And you’re both trying to impress who, exactly?” Valkyrie asked, crossing her arms.

She was more than comfortable wearing a white button-up short sleeved shirt, navy blue blazer with matching dress pants, and a pair of black dress shoes. Short purple hair was fluffed up, just a tad.

Crystal rolled her eyes, shooting a glare at Valkyrie as she finished putting her purple lipstick on. “Seriously, Val? I always dress up.”

“And I wanted to look good for Mirta.” Lucy shrugged, pulling her long green hair into a pony-tail. She’d curled it, dark green ringlets puffed into place after the pony-tail was set.

Valkyrie pushed her glasses up. “It just seems… A bit much, I guess. This is the least formal of the dances. Aside from the guys having to wear their uniforms…”

“Which is fine by me, I love Kota’s.” Crystal winked, looking herself over. “I do believe I’m ready.” She teased, flashing a smile to Valkyrie.

She _was_ beautiful in plum colored dress. Short-sleeved, slightly ruffled, with lace slits on the sides and back. Matching heels with lace stockings. Brunette hair done in waves.

“Kota will feel _oh so lucky_.” Valkyrie deadpanned. “Though if I were you, his behavior should determine just _how lucky_ he gets.” She fought back the urge to smirk at her friend, the gem witch’s face flushing and green eyes narrowing.

“Bitch.”

“That’s _Ms. Bitch_ to you.” Valkyrie winked, turning to a cackling Lucy. “And you? Just how lucky are you hoping to get tonight?” She teased.

Lucy flashed a smile, giving a nonchalant shrug. “We’ll see if the cards fall just right.” Knowing Lucy, they would.

Especially wearing the poison green off-the shoulder top and the dark blue jeans with spiderweb flaring on the sides. And of course, her signature combat boots.

An arm wrapped around Valkyrie, Crystal’s teasing smile in her face. “And what about you, Oh Fearless Leader? Do you think you’ll get your fairy away from the crowd?”

Valkyrie shoved her away playfully, giving a snort. “I highly doubt she’d go for it. And I’m not sneaking into the dorms of Alfea with Griselda _and_ Zarathustra being right there.”

The other two witches flashed a worried look, realization hitting. “Fuck. They will be there…”

“Dammit, and I was so hoping to spend some quality time with Kota.”

“Maybe they’ll be too busy noticing each other?”

“I doubt it. Too many potential witnesses to them being soft.”

“Guess we’re going to have to be good…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alfea was set up just as beautifully as it always was for these dances; lights strung up in warm and inviting colors, the buffet spread out, DJs playing music (from Melody and Harmonia, the two sets of DJs taking turns every few songs to give the other a break), and there were games being played. People talking. People dancing.

Even the teachers seemed to be more at ease and full of laughter this year, the threat from last year gone and out of mind.

Lucy was the first of the three to split, finding Mirta fairly quickly. She was at the buffet, sharing some sort of weather tip to her pixie, Cherie.

Her red hair had gotten just a tad longer over summer, worn in two low pigtails, her blue strand hanging free. She was wearing a dark pink, long-sleeved crop top and her signature red plaid skirt. And from what Valkyrie could see, dark pink flats.

Crystal had soon made her way over to Kota as soon as she saw him near the dance floor.

Valkyrie crossed her arms, eyes scanning for Flora. (She could feel their stares again, could hear the whispers… But with Flora to distract her…)

She let out a startled cry when someone grabbed her shoulder, the witch immediately turning to face who it was. She had to fight back her ‘burn them’ response, letting the flames at her skin simmer down.

Layla. It was only Layla.

“I didn’t think you got startled.” Layla teased, giving a bit of a smirk. Her dark hair was braided back, a fedora on her head. She had on a lilac shirt with slightly puffed, short sleeves with a black and white striped button-up vest. Her pants matched the vest, black and white striped, wearing kitten heeled lilac shoes.

Valkyrie snorted, shaking her head. (She had to recover from this, right.) “I don’t. You just… Snuck up behind me. That’s all.” She shrugged, allowing herself to pout. The fairy shook her head, a knowing smile teasing her lips.

“Whatever you say.” She extended a hand toward Valkyrie, her expression softening. “If you want, I could take you to Flora…? She’s talking with Nabu about algae and it’s benefits so I walked off to get a drink. Saw you and figured you could use a hand.”

Valkyrie gave a more genuine smile, taking Layla’s hand. “Thanks. I… I’d like that.”

“I thought so.” Layla winked. “Besides, you’ve got to get a look at Nabu’s uniform.” Valkyrie laughed, feeling a little lighter.

“I can only imagine.”

Layla led her over to the edge of the courtyard, near the well. Nabu and Flora were in deep discussion still, terms and names of algae coming up every so often.

Nabu did look decent in the Red Fountain uniform, though it was strange to see his hair so tightly braided back and his tattoos covered. The blue and white seemed off on his brown skin, but he had an appropriate gem attached. Green and… An agate?

(Crystal would know for sure. She’d have to ask.)

And then there was Flora…

Brown hair was half up in a braid down her back. A short pink, rose-printed dress with the hanging sleeves. Her pink heels.

She was so beautiful the way her eyes lit up during discussions near and dear to her heart. How her hands moved animatedly as she explained her thoughts to Nabu.

Nabu seemed pretty swept away too, though with his easy going laugh and his ability to shrug things off, he was able to keep amicable.

“Are you two going to be like this _all_ night?” Layla teased, wrapping her arms around Nabu. He laughed, putting an arm around her waist.

“I think we’ve made our points clear.”

Flora grinned to Valkyrie, pulling the witch close to her so she could wrap her arms around her, her chin resting delicately on Valkyrie’s head.

“We have. Though we should have this discussion again, Prince Nabu.” Flora teased, giving a wink. Valkyrie snorted.

“Just don’t get carried away. I don’t know if Layla and I can take sides.”

“Or rather, we’d like to _not_ take sides.” Layla amended. “It just wouldn’t be good for our friend groups.” She teased, kissing Nabu’s cheek. “Now about that dance you promised me…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flora had her undivided attention, the fairy’s graceful movements drawing her in deeper and deeper into a rabbit hole. “Come dance with me.” She pleaded, a pout coming to her lips.

Valkyrie took Flora’s hands in hers, moving one to her shoulder and the other to her waist. “As you wish.” She kissed Flora’s pout, a bit of tease as they started back into the dancing fray.

Sway, step, keep in time with the melody, turn…

“Seems your lessons with Riven have paid off.” The whispered tease came to her ear. Valkyrie flushed, looking away from Flora.

“You… Know about that?”

“Hard to miss when you and Riven seem to have the same steps down.” Flora teased, gesturing to where he and Musa were dancing.

It _was_ the same dance, the moves all-too familiar.

Simple, but classy enough.

And Musa seemed to enjoy it, her face lit up with her smile and dark hair twirling around them. Even the skirt of her dress swayed in time.

“You try having to impress a beautiful fairy.” Valkyrie shot. Flora chuckled, pulling them away from the dance floor and Valkyrie into a kiss.

“My witch is already pretty impressive, if you ask me.” A genuine statement, jade eyes glistening. “But it’s touching, knowing you care so much you try to learn a new skill.” Valkyrie felt herself blushing.

“Riven and I thought it’d be a nice… Surprise.”

“And it is.” Flora kissed her again, wrapping her arms around her. “It’s really nice.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie sat at one of the tables, pouting a bit.

Her cousin, her very own cousin, had stolen her girlfriend away. Granted, it was for harmless fun; Morgan, Helia, some guy named Kindel, and Hecate needed an extra for some trivia game. One Flora just so happened to be good at.

(Her pixie cousin would pay dearly for this. Somehow. Maybe a mix-up hex on her makeup? Or a mood swing curse?)

‘ _She’s close._ ’ Her dragon spoke.

No sooner had his words got out, Valkyrie could feel the pull of the Light Dragon’s Fire. Bloom. “Glad I found you… I’ve been wanting to talk to you.” The familiar voice spoke.

Valkyrie shrugged, motioning for Bloom to take the seat beside her.

She could feel the redhead’s smile, the fairy plopping down beside her.

Her red hair was left to hang in loose curls, a sky-blue sundress clinging to her figure and blue sandals at her feet. “You know… Sky’s officially been declared the Crown Prince of Eraklyon. He said there’s going to be this major party before our winter break and I’m sure Flora would like to go with you.”

Valkyrie gave a little smirk. “I know she would. And if she has interest in attending, I’ll be there at her side.” She dropped the smile for a moment, looking Bloom in the eyes. “Now tell me, what is it you really wanted to talk to me about?” Bloom flushed, her fingers tapping at each other.

“So… Flora told me about what you’re planning on working on this year. The primordial stuff?”

Valkyrie sighed, leaning back in her seat. This wasn’t a conversation she wanted to have just yet. (She’d wanted to wait a bit, experiment some with herself first before bringing Bloom in. She didn’t need the fairy to get hurt.)

“Yeah. It’s for my senior project. Why?”

“Is it true…? That it could potentially help me locate Oritel and Marion?” Bloom asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Her blue eyes were filled with so much hope, her hands clasping themselves. “Is it?”

Valkyrie bit her lip. “It could… But I can’t say for sure. I haven’t even gotten started on anything but the main outline yet and the spells and rituals necessary to draw on Primordials isn’t exactly… Sure fire.”

“But there’s a chance?”

She wasn’t going to let this go. Dammit.

“Yeah.” Valkyrie gave a nod. “There’s a chance. But there’s also a chance we make ourselves implode.”

Bloom seemed to weigh this new information, her hands going to play with her hair. “I get it… It’s risky and we’d be playing with forces we barely understand…”

She took a breath, taking Valkyrie’s hands in hers. _Their magic seemed to wind together, to thread themselves close_.

“But Valkyrie, if there’s a chance I can save my birth family and my realm, if there’s a chance I can meet Marion and Oritel… I have to take it.” Baby blue eyes met ice blue, a magic connection forming deeper and deeper. “Please, let me be part of your research. Let me help you.”

Valkyrie paused, trying to find the strength to tell her ‘no’. (She could die. She could die and the realms would implode without the Light Dragon and the Dark Dragon.)

Dammit.

“Fine. But you have to be prepared to do exactly as I tell you.” Fuck it all. She was screwed.

Bloom grinned, pulling her counterpart into a hug. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t get sappy on me, Red. I’m only doing this because I need the data from the Light Dragon. And I need a test subject aside from myself.” Valkyrie shrugged her off, trying to fight back the flush.

Bloom gave a knowing wink. “If you say so, Valkyrie.” She got to her feet, looking Alfea’s courtyard over. “Thank you.” She gave a faux bow, heading back toward the dance floor where Sky, Stella, and Brandon were waiting for her.

“In your face!” A sudden thrilled shriek came from the game area, Morgan and Hecate were cheering and dancing. Helia and the other specialist seemed pretty pleased with themselves, and Flora was doing her best to not laugh.

 _Must’ve won_. She thought, turning to see who the opponents were. Tecna, Timmy, the fairy called Amaryl, Princess Galatea, and some other fairy with lavender colored hair pulled back by some blue flowered hair tie. Tecna’s team seemed a bit disappointed, Tecna looking actually angry with Morgan. (A bet must’ve been made.)

Valkyrie got to her feet, strolling over with a smirk. “What happened here?”

“Your cousin is a cheat and a scoundrel.” Tecna accused, gesturing toward Morgan. “There’s no way you could have known about the Leni Galaxy. It’s been dead for centuries.”

“Dead planets are _my_ specialty though.” Hecate teased, the witch giving a wink to Valkyrie. “Isn’t that right, Val?”

Valkyrie gave a slow nod. “You did get the best grades in our Magical Geography class. And decent grades in History of Dark Magic.”

“Relax Tecna, it’s not like we lost that badly.” Timmy tried to sway his girlfriend, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Tecna snorted, crossing her arms and ruffling her green and blue dotted blouse more. “It shouldn’t have been a loss in the first place.”

“It’s just bragging rights, Tecna.” Flora hummed, leaning her head back to brush against Valkyrie’s stomach.

“And losing is just part of life. We’ll get them next time.” The new fairy grinned.

“Just be glad we didn’t lose to Stella.” Amaryl growled. “Now _that_ would have been embarrassing.”

Morgan tsked, wagging her finger. “Stella’s got her merits. No one can outdo her in pop culture or fashion rounds.”

“She’s never went against me.” Kindel gave a wink. “I’m pretty good at that stuff.”

“But Brandon is better.” Helia pointed out.

“Just be glad there weren’t musical questions. I’d have wiped you out.” Galatea laughed. Valkyrie felt herself smiling.

The younger fairy sure had come a long way from last year. She’d been so shy and meek…

“Depends on what sort of music the questions were about.” Helia countered, laying his head against Morgan’s. “So… Is the game done now? Can we relax?”

“Please?” Timmy begged.

Tecna sighed. “Fine. Truce. For now.” She narrowed her eyes at Morgan. “There will be a rematch, however. Later.”

Morgan grinned, snapping her fingers into the finger gun thing Bloom showed her. “We’ll see.”

Valkyrie shook her head, leaning to whispered into Flora’s ear. “Back to the dance floor? Or to the gardens?”

“Gardens.” Flora whispered/answered, placing a hand over Valkyrie’s. “It’s starting to get crowded, even for me.”

The witch moved in front of her, extending a hand. “Follow me.”


	5. Chapter Five: Classes Begin

  1. **Classes Begin**



Lucy groaned, downing another cup of coffee. “I’m going to die. I’m going to die and I haven’t even reached eighteen yet.”

Valkyrie and Crystal shared a look. “Nightmares?”

“Or classes already out of hand?”

The green-haired witch sighed. “Both. Kind of.” She shook her head, hands running through her hair. “I had Divination this morning with Professor Ediltrude and I approached her about my nightmares…” She bit her lip. “Apparently she thinks there could be a vision of warning hidden in my nightmare, but she has no idea which part it is.”

Valkyrie placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder, giving a squeeze. “What’s your instinct telling you?”

“Can you feel a different energy coming through at a certain point? We could always use it as a focal point to find what their trying to tell you.”

“Or maybe your powers are evolving? I’ve read that fairies tend to transform in their sleep when their powers surpass them in the waking world, maybe what’s going on with you is similar?” The witches speculated, watching as Lucy’s demeanor seemed to darken.

She raised her hands, a silent command for Valkyrie and Crystal to stop talking. “I get that you two are just trying to help, but right now, I just kinda wanna forget it.”

Crystal gave her a soft smile and nod. “Consider it dropped. For now.”

“In which case, lets focus on our next classes. Crystal and I are headed to Professor Tanae’s class on Familiar Bonding. What’s next for you?” Valkyrie asked, sliding the last bite of her sandwich down for Cheshire to eat.

He purred, taking the bite and curling near her feet to eat. Patches gave a bit of a huff, hopping to Crystal’s lap to beg for a bite of her sandwich.

The witches chuckled, watching as Patches tried to nuzzle a bite away from her witch. “I’m on study hall, so I’ll be working on my senior project.”

Crystal swore, a frown coming to her features. “I haven’t even started on my proposal yet…” She whined. “Maybe I should skip Tanae’s to-”

“Absolutely not! You are not skipping any classes today. It’s the first day!” Valkyrie hissed/snipped. Her arms crossed and her frown appeared. “Honestly Crystal, no shame?”

Crystal rolled her eyes. “Tanae’s classes are easy to catch up on…”

“But not the progress. Missing anything could deter progress with Patches.” Valkyrie argued. Lucy gave a laugh.

“Just go to class like a good witch, Crystal. Skip a different one, like the Connecting to Our True Magic with Professor Pandora.” Lucy snickered.

Crystal snorted. “Or History of Dark Magic with Eldoran.”

Valkyrie shook her head. “I’ll never understand the need to skip a class.”

Lucy and Crystal shared a look and smirk. “Type A Wiatch.” They started to chant, gesturing to Valkyrie until the smaller witch flipped them off.

“And this is why I need new friends.”

“We’re a coven now, Honey. No returns.”

“You’re stuck with us for life now.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie had Cheshire on her desk, scratching under his chin to keep him calm as the rest of the class filed in with their familiars.

Cats, dogs, frogs, snakes, rabbits, birds, and even a few rats and lizards. Euphorbia even had a turtle with her.

Crystal was sitting at her desk beside Valkyrie, Patches laying down on the desk top. “Early in the school year for Tanae to be running late, isn’t it?” Crystal whispered.

Valkyrie shrugged. “She probably got held up by Atalla.”

“Or one of her other pets.” Rubis brought up, her snake slithering up and around her head. Valkyrie tried not to make a face, the snake bringing up unpleasant memories of basilisks and slithering serpents.

The door opened up, a familiar owl flying into the room with Professor Tanae right behind her. “Sorry girls, I had a bit of business with my shapeshifters to attend to.” She shot the younger witches a smile. “But enough excuses, it’s time for our class to start.”

Valkyrie readied her notebook, ready to take notes. She could hear the other witches digging out their own notebooks, the skittering of different creatures bringing a new noise to change the monotony of normal classroom noises.

“This year, instead of learning how our Familiars can be used to help us in a fight, we will be learning how to draw from their inner power and how to connect with them on a different plane.” Professor Tanae began, looking around the room.

“All of you girls must have interesting stories of how you met your familiar, how you connected to them and knew in that moment that this was your partner for life.” Professor Tanae gave a smile. “And that connection is something you need to learn to draw from.”

She looked the room over. “And we’ll start today. Look at your familiar, pet them or soothe them in what ever way they prefer, feel for your magic and theirs. Bring yourselves into a central plane, connect.”

Tanae turned to Atalla, using her fingers to trace patterns on the owl, a little glow coming over them, a power surge sweeping through the room.

The other witches immediately turned to their own familiars, hoping to recreate what Tanae did with Atalla.

Valkyrie had Cheshire sit up, turning to face her. Her fingers began to trace over Cheshire’s fur, scratching under his chin and behind the ears. Yellow eyes met blue, magic coming from both gazes.

The room disappeared, a void coming into play as the witch and feline were alone. Alone together. Valkyrie could feel their magic swelling, forming a barrier around them.

She reached out and held tightly to the tuxedo cat, Cheshire purring and holding her with his claws. There were no words spoken, no need for words.

Their magic was pulsing in sync, combining and curling into them. Connecting them to one another.

Trust. Love. Admiration. Family.

Those thoughts spiraled around inside her mind and his, their heads touching. And slowly, the void faded out, the classroom coming back into focus.

The younger witches were left in awe, mouths agape and eyes wide as they looked at their familiars, holding them closer than they normally would have.

Even Valkyrie and Crystal had Cheshire and Patches in a protective hold.

Tanae grinned. “The first lesson was a success. You have begun to truly _see_ each other as you are.” The bell rang, the professor giving a bow. “See you girls and your familiars tomorrow. Good luck with your other classes.”

Crystal grabbed her bag with one hand, looking to Valkyrie. “You were right… It’s a good thing I didn’t skip.”

“Told you.” Valkyrie grinned, nuzzling Cheshire before she slid him into her backpack. “Pandora’s class next?”

“Yeah. It’s up next…”

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie pulled out her Connections’ notebook and her Familiars’ notebook, highlighting the portions on inner connectivity and its magical connotations.

If her hunch was right, and her classes continued in the direction they were heading, by the weekend she’d be able to do her first experiment with a spell she’d found in her _Magic and Its Sources_ book.

(And looking to the lunar calendar of Magix, Saturday night would be the ideal time to experiment. It’d be half-moon and considering her magic was one half of creationism magic, it’d be perfect.)

‘ _Just remember to alert your friends what you’re up to… You never know when trouble may rear its head._ ’ Her dragon warned. ‘ _And you do not want to be left out in Gloomy Wood Forest, writhing in pain, alone, if something were to go wrong.’_

She rolled her eyes at her dragon’s quip. _‘Nice to know you have faith in me._ ’ She snipped, looking to the clock.

Seven p.m. Time to head downstairs to the cafeteria for dinner…

(Hopefully it’d be that one dish from Harmony. Grilled jindes, rice, and various vegetables native to the realm. Vera had definitely gotten her hooked last year.)


	6. Chapter Six: Down The Rabbit Hole

  1. **Down The Rabbit Hole**



The mountains overlooking Magix were the perfect place to experiment. No one (not even the plant life of Gloomy Wood Forest) would get hurt. She could freely experiment to her heart’s content.

Of course, this spell could be considered dangerous, which is why she spelled her phone to contact Crystal or Lucy just in case things got bad. (Not Flora. Never Flora. She couldn’t bear to worry the fairy like that.)

Valkyrie took a deep breath as she set her bag down, fishing out the items she needed.

Ceremonial candles. An athame (borrowed from her mother). Dragon Breath (a lovely flower, but with a not so lovely smell). Small mirrors to channel reflection. Salt. And the Dragon Totem from Obsidian.

She found a level plain, preparing the salt circle first. She then outlined it with the candles, not quite igniting them yet.

The mirrors were set up in between the candles, catching her reflection as she worked. The Dragon Breath was situated over the candles to be ignited when their flames flickered to life.

Finally, she settled in the center, laying out her Dragon Totem in her lap, the athame drawn in her hand. _‘Now for the incantation_.’

“Flames burn bright,

Flames burn true,

For I am the witch that connects to you.

Dragon-hearted, Dragon-seeking,

As the Obsidian heir, I am willing.”

At the last of the incantation, she drew the athame to her right arm, cutting ever-so-slightly. Blood droplets fell to her totem, the black dragon streaked now in red.

Her flames escaped from her body, coming off in a wave to ignite the candles, allowing the Dragon Breath plants to give off their scent.

She closed her eyes, taking in deep and even breaths as the smoke consumed her and the candles’ flames drew heat from her body.

It happened so slowly, she didn’t register her mind seeming to sink deeper and deeper into herself, closing off into the void of her own making…

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_“Open your eyes. Open them.” A familiar voice commanded. Gruff, but fond. Her dragon._

_Valkyrie did as commanded, her eyes opening to take in her surroundings. It wasn’t the void he normally met her in, but somewhere else entirely._

_A throne room decorated in glossy-looking wood, images and homages to the Dragons carved all around. Tapestries depicting the history of the Dragons lined the walls not carved, done in elegant purples and reds and blacks._

_Her dragon was draped across the back of the throne, head tilted to the side, studying her. “Is this what you wished to see? Obsidian before_ they _arrived?” He asked, amusement in his voice._

_Valkyrie looked around the throne room, still taking it all in._

_Obsidian, or at least this little bit she’s been allowed to see, was definitely beautiful. A stark contrast from the shell her mother had told her of. Not that she was surprised, the Ancestral Witches had a habit of destroying anything beautiful._

_“It is part of what I wanted…” She paused. “Connection. That’s what I wanted. To form a connection to… All parts of myself.”_

_“Including the heritage you were denied learning about? Save for the history lessons, that is.” He mused, moving off the throne’s back. “Are you sure you want to learn?” His snout was at her face, red eyes gleaming into hers. “Are you sure of this path?”_

_“Why wouldn’t I be?” Valkyrie asked, forcing herself to stand her ground and change her stance. Arms crossed, head up high, standing up straight and (as best as she could) tall._

_There was a laugh._ Her _laugh, coming from beside one of the columns. Valkyrie turned, her body tensing as the Other Her walked up beside her. “He’s just worried, Vally.” Her own voice teased her, the Other Valkyrie wrapping her arms around shoulder, too long nails digging into her shoulder._

 _“After all, you’ve only just_ accepted _me as part of you. And that means it’ll be awfully difficult for us to… Stay level-headed as_ our _power grows.”_

 _Valkyrie glowered at the other her, shoving the Other away. “Just because I’ve_ accepted _you doesn’t mean I’m going to_ become _you. Might wanna remember that.” Valkyrie growled before turning back to her dragon._

_“I’m sure about this. If I can connect more fully with what we are and with who we are, we can help Bloom do the same.”_

_“Seriously? Bloom? Why would we want to help her? Because we feel guilty about what Daddy Dearest did to her planet? Get real.” Other Valkyrie huffed, fixing her longer hair into a ponytail. “We’ll be better off just letting her struggle.”_

_Valkyrie refused to take the bait, instead clenching her fists and allowing her nails to dig into her own skin._

_“I am being serious. There’s a chance we can help save Domino and Oritel and Marion. I owe Bloom that much.”_

_“You don’t owe her, Obsidian Heir. You’re not the one who destroyed Domino.” Her dragon reminded her._

_Valkyrie shook her head. “Still… Bloom deserves a chance to know them. And if we can connect to you and the Dragon of Light… We’ll be that much closer to finding out what really happened and how we can save them.”_

_Her dragon hummed. “It is a noble thought… Perhaps things can be arranged… After our predicament is fixed.”_

_Valkyrie frowned. “What predicament?”_

_Her Other laughed. “Oh, you haven’t noticed?” Another laugh. “You really haven’t noticed…”_

_“Noticed what? What predicament?!” The scenery began to fade out, the spell obviously wearing off._

_“Go to ShadowHaunt… Do what needs to be done.” Her dragon’s voice echoed. “Go to ShadowHaunt.”_

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ShadowHaunt?!” She exclaimed, gasping for air as she woke up.

Valkyrie was back at the mountain, her candles gone out and the Dragon Breath completely burned away. A cold sweat running down her body.

Her dragon’s voice still rang in her ears though, one thought. ShadowHaunt. But why? Everything was back in harmony on ShadowHaunt… What could be happening that’s so urgent?

(Whatever it was, it’d have to wait until tomorrow. She had to rush back to Cloud Tower before dinner… And she had to get Crystal and Lucy prepared…)


	7. Chapter Seven: There's A Mystery Afoot

  1. **There’s A Mystery Afoot**



“So, we’re going all the way to ShadowHaunt because your dragon suggested something _may_ be wrong out there?” Lucy asked, crossing her arms.

Crystal frowned. “Yeah that sounds kind of suspicious. Doesn’t it?” Valkyrie sighed, giving a shrug as she grabbed her backpack.

“I get it. It’s Sunday and you two have your own things to focus on. That’s fine. But I’m still going.” She grabbed her cellphone, not wanting to be disconnected in case something did happen. “I do have a responsibility to the place.” She started for the door, pausing when she heard movement behind her.

Lucy and Crystal gave a combined groan. “We’re coming.”

“You may need back up.”

Valkyrie turned to them, giving a smile. “I always knew I could count on you two.”

Crystal rolled her eyes. “We’re only doing this because you get into trouble when you’re by yourself.”

“And the quicker we can nip whatever this is in the bud, the quicker we can focus solely on our classwork.”

Valkyrie gave a hum. “It still shows you both care about me.” She teased, making her way out of the room.

“I’m already regretting this.”

“Maybe it’ll just be something simple… Like issues with those Downlanders.”

“We’re never that lucky.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The garden was nearly wrecked, the Swallowtails and Haunting Willows’ protective thorns littering the ground and protruding from the fences.

ShadowHaunt’s waterfall had went from pristine clean to polluted and dead.

And the creatures were in hiding, a few coming out trembling from the caverns. Valkyrie swore, rushing to the gator hounds and shadow creatures, trying to exude enough power to calm them down.

“What… Happened here?” Lucy asked, looking around the castle and ruins. “Do you think those guard worms of Amentia’s did this?”

Crystal looked at the webs decorating the trees, how they seemed to be stealing energy from them. “I don’t think so… Val?”

Valkyrie’s anger rose, getting worse and worse as she saw the damage to ShadowHaunt and the pain her shadow creatures were under.

“Amentia wouldn’t be that stupid.” Valkyrie snipped, looking around. The ‘leader’ of the gator hounds was rubbing against her, nervous and antsy. She stooped down to his level, stroking his head and allowing her magic to connect to his being.

 _Blue hair and a manic laugh. Eyes wide with mania. Insect swarms at her beck and call. And she was familiar… So very familiar_.

Valkyrie shook her head, trying to shake the image from her mind. (Who was she? What did she want?) She feigned a cough, clearing her throat as she got to her feet.

“Check the inside of the castle… See what else has been destroyed.”

“On it.” Both Lucy and Crystal gave mock salutes, disappearing into the castle. Valkyrie turned back to the lead gator hound, stroking his head once again.

“Don’t worry, we’ll find who did this, and they will pay.” Valkyrie vowed, walking toward the castle. _‘Someone will definitely be paying._ ’

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The castle had been ransacked, the most destruction done in the library and divination rooms. Crystal and Lucy were making comments back and forth, trying to name off possible suspects.

But none of the people mentioned could have caused this much trouble or frightened the shadow creatures. None of them.

“What if this Icy, Darcy, and Stormy’s doing?” Crystal frowned, looking over one of the tapestries. “They do have a flair for flash destruction… And they certainly hate you.”

Valkyrie shook her head, noticing a few books missing from the log Tecna, Timmy, and Digit had set up. “No… This was a more deliberate attack. Some of the books are missing and I highly doubt those three would have any interest in them.”

“What about… The Ancestral Witches?” Lucy asked, her voice whispered and full of awe and fear. Valkyrie glowered, a growl escaping her lips.

“Those three are dead.”

“But does that matter? I mean… You’ve said it yourself that they mess with your dreams… Maybe they have enough juice to do physical attacks too?” Lucy pointed out.

“Not. A. Chance.”

“Yeah… Death is sort of a weird thing… Just because they’re in her head doesn’t mean they’re able to do out-of-body stuff…” Crystal shrugged. “Though, that still leaves the question of who could have messed with ShadowHaunt.”

Valkyrie frowned, getting her phone out of her bag. “I don’t know who messed with ShadowHaunt, but I do know how to fix this. And how to make sure they can’t do it again.”

“Let me guess, calling the fairies to help clean up?” Lucy teased.

“And then a few of those protection sigils?” Crystal grinned.

Valkyrie found herself giving a smile. “But of course. And perhaps a few other protective measures. I don’t like knowing that there’s someone out there capable of doing shit like this.”

Her friends placed their hands on her shoulders, pulling her close. “Don’t worry, we’re going to keep ShadowHaunt and its creatures safe.”

“And we’re going to find who did this and kick their ass.”

“Cloud Tower style.”

Valkyrie laughed, shaking her head as she pulled away. “You guys really are the best.”


	8. Chapter Eight: The War of Magic Display

  1. **The War of Magic Display**



Valkyrie waited at Alfea’s entrance, checking the time on her phone. Almost 3:00. Bloom’s classes would be ending soon, and then they’d be on their way to the Magix Museum.

There was a War Of Magic exhibit on display, which would be beyond informative for the Draconic Duo.

“Val!” Flora’s voice enthused, arms wrapping around Valkyrie and pulling her close. “Waiting on Bloom?” She asked, keeping her arms wrapped around the witch.

Valkyrie laughed, leaning more into the fairy’s touch. “Yeah. We’re going to head out to the museum today.”

“That’s what she was telling us.” Flora hummed. “She said there was an exhibit about the war and that it could hold clues?”

Valkyrie gave a nod. “Something like that.” She let her gaze take in Flora, as if committing her to memory. “You know… We shouldn’t be at the exhibit long… You and I could-” She pulled Flora into a kiss, letting her hands slide down to her waist.

Flora laughed, playfully shoving Valkyrie away. “Not tonight! I have to finish setting up my presentation for Professor Palladium’s herbology class. I’m wanting to study the minuet differences between poisonous and venomous plants and how they contribute to their ecosystems.”

Valkyrie felt her lips turn into a grin. “I love you.” She kissed Flora’s cheek. “My brilliant Flora.”

Flora flushed. “Flatterer.”

Valkyrie was going to retort, but paused. “If you needed any resources to help with your presentation, Professor Zarathustra would probably be ecstatic to help you out.” Flora tilted her head a bit, confused.

“Even though I’m not one of her students? Or a witch?”

“She’s taught Griselda a thing or two about plant life, why would you be any different?” Valkyrie asked, lacing her fingers with Flora’s.

Flora chuckled. “I’d like to think I’m fairly different from Griselda… Namely that I’m still a student and not dating Zarathustra.”

“True. True.” Valkyrie laughed, her head leaning into Flora’s shoulder. “So, what are the other girls up to today?”

Flora gave a wink. “Stella and Brandon are off for their anniversary to some restaurant Stella loves. And Tecna is working on her project for Dufour. And Musa and Layla are working on their routine for the talent show.”

Valkyrie chuckled. “But of course they are. Let me guess, a dance battle?”

“That’s right, and it’s gonna be off the hook.” Musa laughed, coming up to the group, Layla in tow. Layla gave a twirl and flip, shaking her ass toward Musa.

“The people of Magix won’t know what hit ‘em!” Layla giggled, pushing loose strands of hair back.

Flora grinned. “I’ll definitely be rooting for you two.”

Valkyrie hummed, eyeing the duo. “I _could_ be persuaded to vote for the two of you… But it’d take some doing.” She teased, giving a wink. “I _am_ hard to please.”

Flora smirked, wrapping her arms around Valkyrie. “I think I could persuade you.”

Layla and Musa laughed as the witch’s face reddened, a sheepish smile coming to her features. “So glad you all find this amusing…”

“Find what amusing?” a familiar voice asked, a certain redheaded fairy making her appearance. Poor thing appeared to have run a mile, her hair mussed up and a slight bit of sweat covering her.

“We’re just teasing Val.” Musa winked.

“And making sure she knows who she’s voting for in the talent show next week.” Layla teased. Flora gave Valkyrie’s shoulder a squeeze before letting her go.

“Nothing major.” Valkyrie sighed, wrapping an arm around Bloom.

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell you about it later. But first thing’s first, the museum.” Bloom grinned.

“I just hope it’s more informative than the books Concorda showed me.”

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie grabbed Bloom’s shoulder, pulling her back. “Hold up, don’t go in yet.” Bloom frowned, turning to face Valkyrie and crossing her arms.

“Why?”

“I don’t know about you, Bloom, but I’d rather not get recognized going into the museum. Especially not since that hero worship crap has started up…”

Bloom swore. “You’re right. It has gotten worse.” She sighed, looking to the museum. “But we still have to go inside…”

“We can use a glamour spell.” Valkyrie smiled. “Like so.” She waved her hands over her head and body, little twinkles lighting up around her.

Short purple hair became long and blonde, pulled back into a ponytail. Blue eyes became amber, glasses frames from black to red. She even managed to make herself appear taller than she was, giving a wink to Bloom. “Voila.”

Bloom laughed. “Okay, my turn. I guess.” She closed her eyes, moving her hands in a similar motion to Valkyrie’s. Long red hair became short and black, blue eyes turned green. “Better?”

Valkyrie grinned. “Better.” She gestured to the door. “After you.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The exhibit was bold and colorful despite its morbid subject matter.

Images from the battles lined the walls, different swords used by various members of both the Coven and the Company were in cases.

Blasters. Weapons. Old news reels showing clips from the battles and interviews with the sovereigns involved. “Sky’s dad looks so different there… So young and… Not so angry.” Bloom whispered, gesturing to an interview King Erendor had done after the Battle on Lunaris.

Valkyrie was going to answer, when a certain sword caught her eyes. The hilt gleamed at her, an Obsidian stone and a dragon insignia designed into the handle, the blade looking sharp and somewhat… Foreboding. “So that’s the sword, Mom said he carried…”

“That who carried?”

“My dad.” Valkyrie whispered, looking the sword over. “Not much use to him anymore…” She sighed, looking to a familiar image. (Familiar to her, anyway. She’d seen it at Faragonda’s home and at Saladin’s… But her mother hated the image.)

The new Points of Magic were in position to combine their magic together. Griffin, Faragonda, and Saladin. “They looked so young…”

“They were.” Valkyrie reminded her. “They were just barely older than we are now…” She noticed a certain image, dragging Bloom over to it. “What do you see?”

Bloom swore, looking at the painting. It depicted the Fall of Domino; Marion and Oritel vs. the Ancestral Witches and Valtor. “It’s almost life-like to look at…”

“Talk about your uncanny valley…” Valkyrie extended a hand to Bloom. “You okay?”

Bloom took her hand, giving a squeeze. “No… but I will be.” She turned to Valkyrie, giving a smile. “Thank you, for bringing me here…”

“Of course…” Valkyrie paused. “Did it help?”

“Sort of… I mean, I got to hear their voices on those news clips… And I got to get a crash course of my history…” She wrapped her arms around herself. “I just, wish there was more we could do.”

“Hey, this was just step one. And who knows, maybe seeing some of this stuff might trigger a memory from your dragon? Maybe you’ll get a clue.”

“Maybe.” Bloom frowned, studying a different image. “Who’s that, with my parents?”

Valkyrie returned the frown, her eyes following where Bloom was gesturing. A portrait of Marion and Oritel was on display, and to their right was a man who appeared to be about Oritel’s age.

Tall. Long brownish beard and hair. A smug smile on his face. A hand on his sword. And familiar… So damn familiar.

“I… I remember him… Vaguely… He had an ‘H’ name.” Valkyrie started, looking at the man harder. “I just… Can’t recall _who_ he was…”

“Maybe we can ask Faragonda?”

“Maybe.” Valkyrie couldn’t help but study the man further, his familiarity driving her crazy. His name. She needed his name.

 _‘To your left._ ’ Her dragon muttered. Valkyrie frowned, turning to her left.

Another image, this time from the Coven’s side. ‘ _Her!_ ’ Valkyrie internally screeched.

A witch with blue hair and a manic look, insects at her side. This was the witch who had attacked ShadowHaunt. “Dammit there’s no name plaque.” Valkyrie swore.

Bloom frowned. “Why? Is she important?” The fairy gestured to the image Valkyrie had been studying.

“No… Yes. Maybe.” Valkyrie swore. “I don’t know, Bloom… All I know is that when I was comforting the gator hounds, her image kept popping up.”

“So you think she’s the one who attacked ShadowHaunt?”

“I think it was either her or someone who looks enough like her to create confusion.” Valkyrie hummed. “I could ask Mom…”

Bloom gave a nod. “Or Faragonda.”

“One of them will know.”


	9. Chapter Nine: Zenith's Meltdown

  1. **Zenith’s Meltdown**



Crystal and Lucy shared a look, concern growing on their faces. “Are we sure about this?” Crystal finally asked, gesturing to the dorm room door. “Just because Lucrezia said that Rubis was sick doesn’t mean we have to check on her…”

“Yeah. Lucre got her homework for her.” Lucy pointed out. Valkyrie frowned, turning to face her friends.

“Don’t you two think it’s weird that _all_ Zenithian witches at CT are sick right now? Rubis, Nimeria, Tabitha, Rouco, and Malia all laid out of classes.” Valkyrie pulled out her phone, showing a text from Flora.

“It’s not just here at CT either, Zenithian fairies have come down with it too. Tecna included.” Valkyrie watched for their reactions.

Lucy swore, looking to Rubis’ door. “What can we do?”

“Yeah, this thing doesn’t sound like it’s going to come with an instruction manual.” Crystal crossed her arms.

“We have to do something.” Valkyrie knocked on the door, listening for Rubis’ soft ‘come in’. The wooden door squeaked open, Rubis was splayed out on her bed.

She looked rough; matted pink hair, bags under her eyes, fever sweats, and paler than normal skin. Lucrezia was at her side, a soft and haunting tune coming from her body in waves. “Hey… What brings you by?” Lucrezia greeted, giving a soft smile.

Rubis coughed, forcing herself to raise up. “Did… I forget a class…?”

Valkyrie shook her head. “No. I think Lucrezia got all of your homework. Not that you should be worried about that right now.”

“You need to focus on healing up. You’re in no condition to be worrying about anything other than that.” Lucy chastised, moving to help Rubis lay back down.

“So… Then why are you here?”

“Rubis, they’re just checking in. Be nice.” Lucrezia frowned, turning on her heels. “She’s a bad patient. I’m sorry.”

“That sounds more like a Bishop problem.” Crystal teased, winking at Rubis. The Zenith witch swore, reaching for her phone.

“I gotta tell him to stay away… I don’t need any more babying…”

“You’re sick, Rubes. Milk it while ya can.” Valkyrie looked her friend over. “Though I am curious as to _how_ you got sick… You’re always such a germaphobe…”

Rubis frowned, or well, she tried to. “I honestly don’t know… But if this was a hex someone brought on to me, they’d better hope to the Dragons I don’t find them.” She growled, quickly succumbing to a coughing fit.

Lucrezia swore, moving to grab a water bottle for Rubis’ throat. “I don’t think you were hexed, Rubis… You’re… Not the only Zenithian sick.”

“Nurse Mal said all of our Zenithian students are sick… And my girlfriend’s friend, Tecna, is also sick…” Valkyrie pointed out.

Crystal’s phone went off, a frown coming to her face. “And that was my boyfriend at Red Fountain… Apparently the Zenithian students there are sick too…”

Rubis paled further. “No way…”

“Rubis?” Lucy frowned. “Something you want to tell us?” The sick witch shook her head, her body seeming to spasm.

“It’s not possible… It can’t be true…”

“Rubis. What’s going on?” Valkyrie asked, her voice becoming a bit more stern. (His voice. Her dragon’s.)

Rubis looked to the other witches, tears in her eyes. “We’re all going to die… Zenith… It’s a technomagic realm and the balance is so particular… We have to keep it a certain temperature so the algorithms that run the realm won’t burn out… But if we’re all sick, it means Zenith is headed for meltdown.”

Valkyrie looked to Crystal and Lucy, a plan already formulating in her head. “Not on our watch.” She stood, making her way for the door, listening as Crystal and Lucy rushed to keep up with her.

She just needed to make a few calls… And then they’d head to Zenith to stop whatever the hell was going on there.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brandon and Sky were trading snide remarks and swears as they piloted the newest squad ship, trying to keep the thing level.

“I thought you two were experts?” Lucy demanded through gritted teeth, holding tight to her seat and Mirta’s.

“Timmy and Helia are our usual pilots. But since this illness has been going around, Timmy’s out of commission and Helia’s trying to help our infirmary out.” Riven pointed out. “And Kota, one of our resident wizards, is working with Professor Salvador on a temporary cure to help the fevers die down.”

“Which leaves us.” Nabu sighed, looking to the girls. “And while we’re not perfect pilots, we’re close enough.”

“If you say so.” Layla swore, holding to her chair. “Stella, you doing okay back there?”

“Peachy.” Stella was holding to Brandon’s chair, hands shaking. Bloom took her friend’s hand, trying to calm her down.

“Don’t worry, Stella, we’re here.”

“That’s right.” Mirta winked.

“And if we do start crashing, we have wings.” Layla reminded her. Stella’s grip visibly tightened, Bloom’s hand turning red from the hold. Flora swore, shaking her head.

“Layla… I don’t think that was the right thing to say…” Valkyrie snorted.

“No kidding.” She turned to Stella, taking a deep breath. “Princess, relax… Sky and Brandon will keep us airborne. Right boys?”

“Right.”

“We’ve got this, Babe. Don’t worry.” Brandon winked at Stella, extending his free hand to her. “We’ve got you.”

Riven shook his head, looking toward Layla. “So why isn’t Musa on this mission?”

“Or Morgan?”

“Same reason Helia and Kota aren’t. Tecna and the other fairies from Zenith needed some TLC. Musa and Morgan elected to stay behind to help Nurse Ofelia give it.” Flora explained, taking Valkyrie’s hand in hers. “Which I thought about doing… But I thought I may be needed.”

“Always.” Valkyrie grinned, squeezing her hand.

Riven scoffed, shaking his head. “Oh, gag me.” Nabu laughed, patting Riven’s shoulder hard.

“You’re just pissy because Musa wanted to stay with Tecna. If she were here, you’d be just as sappy as the rest of us.” Nabu teased. Riven flashed him a glare, but there was no heat in it.

“Smartass.”

“I’ll be here all week.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They’d all heard stories about Zenith before, and Valkyrie knew the fairies had been there before when Tecna’s parents held her memorial (before the rescue at Omega).

It had been a utopian city.

Bright lights and hologram images to advertise and show the news. Large metallic and shiny buildings. Dome-based houses. Research facilities upon research facilities.

A few ‘terra parks’ for those who needed ‘fresh’ air. Crisp and cool temps. Soft white snow. And so many robots and AIs doing menial jobs to allow the Zenithians time and chances to create and invent.

But now?

There was no snow, only heat and more heat. The buildings were off the grid. Robots and AIs were shut down.

There were people passed out in the grass, the news reports showing the Zenithian reporter unconscious while the scrawl read about the illness spreading throughout the realm.

The skies were dark. And those webs… Those webs that had covered ShadowHaunt now covered the buildings of Zenith.

“What the hell?” Bloom asked, looking around.

Stella shook her head, clinging to Bloom and Brandon. “I do _not_ like this at all… It’s like the start of that one movie… The one you made me watch on Earth? With the giant spider making giant spider webs and eating all of those people?”

Lucy swore. “Stella, get a grip! This isn’t a movie.”

“This is real life.” Valkyrie looked around, trying not to step into the puddles and soak her boots.

“Which means those webs are real! And that means there’s a real giant spider on the loose somewhere.” Stella fretted.

Layla and Riven both shot her a look. “Girl, you went toe-to-toe with Valtor, stood up to Cassandra and her evil daughter, and told Lord Darkar to take a hike… But you’re scared of a bug? And some heights?”

“Arachnid. Spiders are arachnids.” Lucy corrected, giving a sheepish smile to the looks she got. “Just saying…”

Stella huffed, letting go of Bloom and Brandon to cross her arms. “I’m allowed to have fears.”

“Even unfounded ones?” Riven teased. “You know, considering you can fly and have taken on way worse than a giant spider?”

“Riven, I will fry you with the power of Solaria if you don’t shut up.”

Brandon grabbed a hold of Stella, giving a slight smile. “She’s just a little cranky because she’s worried about Tecna…”

“We’re all worried.” Crystal frowned. “Where are we even supposed to start? I don’t know where the mainframe is or even if it’s a real thing or a metaphorical one.”

“Real. Zenithians are typically on-the-nose about things… Practical.” Nabu answered, drawing out his staff. “Let’s start with a location spell, we can use it to guide us to the center of Zenith and the cause of all of this…”

Valkyrie looked to Bloom, sharing a look with her counterpart. ‘ _Separate. You’ll need to separate_.’ A familiar voice commanded.

“I think we need to split up.” Bloom and Valkyrie both spoke, flushing when they realized they had spoken in unison.

The rest of the group swore because they knew when the dragons synced up, something bad was bound to happen.

“And just how should we split up?” Layla asked, taking the bait.

“Two teams. One needs to frost the center back up and get it restarted… The other needs to find whatever caused this and bring it down.” Bloom started.

“Question is, who’s more suited for what?” Valkyrie picked up where Bloom left off. “Layla, can you turn water into ice? Or at least, chill it out enough it _can_ freeze?”

Layla frowned. “I can try…”

“I may be more help with that.” Nabu interjected. “Ice and I seem to have an understanding.” He half-teased, spinning his staff as if to prove a point.

“My sapphire spells are pretty chill.” Crystal inserted herself into Group A, walking over to Layla and Nabu.

Riven and Sky shrugged, taking the side of Group A. “We’ll keep them covered. Do you think the rest of you can handle whatever did this?”

Valkyrie and Bloom shared a smile. “We do have the Dragon Fire.”

“And good friends.”

“We can handle this.” Brandon winked to the other boys, pulling out his PDA. “I say we meet back up at the ship in a few hours, victorious or not.”

“And if we’re not victorious, I vote we alert the actual authorities.” Lucy snorted when she noticed the look they gave her. “Just because we’re good at handling crises doesn’t mean we should be the ones to always handle them… We do have schoolwork!”

Valkyrie and Mirta both laughed. “Never thought you’d worry about your classwork, Lucy…”

“Or about getting into trouble.”

Lucy frowned, throwing her hands up. “Maybe I want a break every once in a while… Ever think of that?”

The group had a little laugh at Lucy’s expense, Crystal and Valkyrie doing their best to give solidarity.

“Alright, alright… We’ve had our feel-good moment. Let’s get this show on the road.” Riven tapped his foot, impatience oozing from him.

The girls rolled their eyes as the fairies stepped back, a bright light consuming them.

All but Mirta were in their Enchantix, the other fairy had her Winx and her Charmix pendant. (A little crescent pendant and what seemed like a pumpkin bag.)

“We’ll meet back here in three hours. Good luck everyone.” Sky gave a wave, his group turning toward the East.

“This way guys… And stay together.” Bloom gestured for them to follow her, heading straight toward the various webs, following them as if they were a trail…

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was looking hopeless. Zenith was still far too warm for the realm to maintain equilibrium and the source was nowhere to be found.

Valkyrie clenched her fists, keeping her senses open. Something had to happen. Something had to give.

Didn’t it?

(So many lives were on the line… Zenithians needed them to succeed…)

“Girls… Are those things normal for Zenith?” Brandon asked, his voice slightly shaken. The girls turned their heads toward the sky.

Swarms of flying beetleroaches and giant catapoes were heading straight for them. Lucy swore, jumping in front of the group, arms raised.

“We’re not your enemies… You need to calm down!” The witch projected her voice and sent out her magic aura, a low wave of magic going over the creatures.

Nothing changed except the beetleroaches started to hiss. “I think you just made them mad…” Stella swallowed.

The swarm surrounded the group, a laugh-no, a cackle- coming from behind the creatures. ‘ _She’s alive…_ ’

‘ _Who is?_ ’ Valkyrie asked, determined to find out who was behind the swarms.

She didn’t have to wait long, a witch appeared in front of the swarm, playfully petting one of the beetleroaches.

Dark blue hair done in a spiked fashion, manic eyes and paled skin. She wore an armor similar to that of an insects’ exoskeleton, burgundy and with a cloak.

“I was wondering who dared to defy me and my orders. Such a shame its nothing more than a bunch of schoolyard brats.” The witch scoffed, shaking her head. “Shouldn’t you children be in class?”

Valkyrie glowered ready to speak up when Lucy pushed forward. “I don’t know you and I don’t know about _your orders_. What I do know is that you’re hurting those creatures and it’s really pissing me off.” Lucy growled, hands already glowing.

The witch laughed, an amused look coming to her face. “A fellow Inseca witch… Always pleased to see one of my own.” She stopped stroking her ‘pet’, looking the group over. Her face fell though, when she saw Bloom and Valkyrie.

“My, my… The new Dragons have emerged.” She turned to Valkyrie, tsking. “Though your father would be so disappointed in you, My Dragon… Aligning yourself with these… Fairies,” a look to Brandon, "and their pretty boy.”

Valkyrie snorted, crossing her arms. “That’d sting, if I actually gave a damn about what a dead man had to think of me.”

“We don’t care about the past, all we care about is right now… What did you do to Zenith?” Bloom growled, wings fluttering. The witch cackled again, shaking her head.

“I merely decided to finish the job I had started on before being taken to Omega…” She looked to the girls. “Zenith must fall for my Mistresses to rise.”

Valkyrie glowered, her fists igniting. “Those hags are dead, and if you don’t fix Zenith and turn yourself in, you’ll join them.” She threatened.

“Oooh… You are definitely Valtor’s daughter… He had such a nasty temper…” The witch raised her hand. “Let’s see if you can fight as well as he did.” She snapped her fingers, the swarm diving in for the attack.

Shit.

Stella and Bloom grasped hands, forming a flaming circle to burn back some of the first assaulters. Mirta took to the air and began to create barriers to confuse the insects, making them attack the glassy walls.

Brandon had his sword and shield out, taking down as many of the catapoes as he could while avoiding being bitten.

Flora sprung a few vines, catching a few and watching as Lucy tried to snap them out of whatever spell the witch had put them under.

And Valkyrie rushed after the witch. “You’re not going to survive this.” She growled, allowing her flames to come to the surface of her skin.

Fires started, blocking the witch in. “I’ve seen this move before.” The witch taunted, shifting into a large dragonfly and soaring past the flames before turning back. “Next shot?”

A flaming arrow shot by Valkyrie’s head, hitting the witch dead on. “Can’t let you have all the fun.” Bloom teased, flying up beside her.

Good. Two against one. Much better odds.

The witch growled, getting to her feet. “Nice trick, have a few of mine.” She raised her hands, a swarm of small gnats began to swoop over the Dragon keepers.

Ones with teeth that pierced flesh.

Bloom and Valkyrie swatted at the bugs. “We may need to try-” spitting out a bug, “convergence.” Valkyrie yelled out, extending her hand blindly.

“If this works-” a cough, “it’ll be epic.” Bloom agreed.

The two managed to find the other’s hand.

Flames. They focused on their inner flames igniting and burning and drawing from each other. Living, breathing fires blossoming from their hands and their beings, their Dragons awakening and projecting from the flames.

The insects sizzled and fell away from them and the surrounding area, a blinding light and burning heat spreading far and wide over the realm.

Drained.

They were so drained from the attack, falling to their knees and panting and sweating. Valkyrie’s vision was blurring, but she tried to make herself stand. She couldn’t let the witch get away.

She couldn’t.

But it was too late. The witch was gone and her insect army was either destroyed in the flames she and Bloom created, or had flown off with her.

“Dammit.” She swore, groaning as she fell back. “Dammit.”

“You okay?!” Brandon’s voice called over, his boots squishing against the-snow? Snow?

Zenith’s snow… Zenith was snowing again. Maybe… Maybe they did do something right…

Valkyrie allowed her eyes to shut as she laid in the snow. Zenith was going to be okay. It was all going to be okay.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bloom was laying/flopped over on Sky as the ship started up, Valkyrie in similar form on Flora’s shoulder.

“’M glad you managed to fix the mainframe…” Valkyrie slurred, looking toward Crystal, Layla, and Nabu. “You did awesome.”

“Maybe, but from what Brandon was saying, you guys are the ones who saw action.” Layla pointed out.

“Who was that witch anyway? Someone you recognized?” Stella asked. “Or maybe someone your mother would recognize?”

Valkyrie gave a half-shrug and a groan. “Maybe… She… She seems familiar, but I can’t put my finger on it…”

“She’s from Inseca though… She said that much.” Lucy growled. Mirta was stroking her hair, an attempt to calm Lucy down. “Though she damn well doesn’t deserve to be. She was seriously hurting those insects.”

“Those insects were trying to eat _us_ , Lucy… They weren’t innocent.” Stella argued.

“They were under her control, Stella. They couldn’t help it.”

Bloom raised her hand. “No fighting… Please… My head is killing me.”

“Ditto.” Valkyrie nuzzled into Flora’s shoulder. “That convergence took everything…”

“But it was spectacular to see.” Flora chuckled, running her hand through Valkyrie’s hair. “You two are so powerful.”

“I wish we could have all seen it.” Sky pouted. “Maybe next time though.”

“We’d better be there next time… I didn’t get to try any of my new moves.” Riven complained. Valkyrie snorted.

“I don’t think dancing would have helped us any, Riven.” She teased.

“You’ve not seen my moves. My moves can win any fight.”

“Riiiight. And I’m going to leave Stella for an ogre.” Brandon laughed. The others couldn’t help but join in, including Valkyrie.

Which she soon regretted, her head throbbing again. “Laughing hurts…”

“Why did we use convergence again?” Bloom whined/pouted.

“You were getting eaten by gnats.” Mirta reminded them. “And we had giant insects trying to kill us while under mystery witch’s influence.”

“Why is this our life?” Valkyrie whined. Crystal shook her head.

“No way, you don’t get to witch about this. This was _your_ idea, Valkyrie. _You_ wanted to help save Zenith.”

“I fucking hate you.”

“You’ll love me again after you rest. You’re just pissy right now because you’re drained, tired, and lost a fight.”

“It’s not a loss if the other party retreated.”

“It’s not a win either.”

Sky groaned. “Witches… They always have to fight about something.”

“Don’t even get started with me, Sky… I still owe you for breaking through my favorite spell.” Crystal glowered. Brandon laughed.

“Should’ve stayed quite, Sky…”


	10. Chapter Ten: Mandragora

  1. **Mandragora**



Valkyrie was studying with Lucy and Crystal, her body still heated from the fight a few days ago. Anger surged inside of her, her mind replaying the battle over and over again.

(She thought of what she _should_ have done, how she _should_ have fought.)

Granted, things went well. Zenith was back up and running and the Zenithians in the Magix schools (along with the rest of the realms) were fully healed and back in their classes. But the look her mother had given when she described the new witch, how she’d rushed the younger witches out of her office to conference with Saladin and Faragonda…

It wasn’t good. Everything in her being was screaming that something needed to be done about this witch, that they didn’t know _nearly_ enough.

“Val…?” Lucy’s hand was waving in front of her face, concern in the other witch’s voice. “Magix to Val. We’re trying to study for an exam.”

Valkyrie felt her face flush, a sheepish smile coming to her lips. “Sorry… I was just-”

“Thinking about our mystery witch?” Crystal finished. “You never had a good poker face.” The gem witch teased, answering the question Valkyrie had been about to ask.

“There’s just something about her… And I know _he_ knows her.” Valkyrie gestured to her dragon totem, frowning at it. “But he’s refused to talk to me about it…”

“Let me guess, he’s giving you some cosmic bullshit about needing to figure some things out for yourself?” Crystal teased.

“Because otherwise you’d become lazy in trying to research on your own, therefore hindering you from finding your path?” Lucy finished. Valkyrie groaned, putting her head in her hands.

“Why do I feel like we’ve had this conversation before?”

“Because we have. Multiple times.”

“It’s amazing how much the past comes back to bite everyone in the ass.” Lucy hummed, leaning back against the dresser. She frowned, gesturing to the wall clock. “It’s nearly five… Ms. Griffin wanted us all at the auditorium for some announcement… Right?”

“Right.” Crystal sighed, getting to her feet. “Guess we should start our way down?” Valkyrie nodded, stretching a bit before rising up.

“Let’s hope she’ll give us some answers… I hate being in the dark.”

“Honestly I’m fine with it. What’s the old saying? ‘Ignorance is bliss?’ Or some shit like that?” Lucy asked. Crystal tsked.

“I’m pretty sure ‘knowledge is power’ trumps the ignorance thing.”

“Or maybe it’s about curiosity killing the cat?” Lucy snipped. Valkyrie scoffed.

“No one ever remembers the full saying. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back.” She reminded Lucy, giving a wink as the other witch growled.

“Of fucking course you’d remember all of it.”

“You’ve met my mother. Memorization is key.” Valkyrie laughed. “I’m pretty sure I know all of her ‘what the hell what you thinking’ speeches by heart.”

“At this point, I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.” Crystal chuckled. “Though last year I heard a newer one… After the Water Stars incident?” Valkyrie shuddered, her face scrunching up in disgust.

“Do me a favor? Never bring that up again. Okay?”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The auditorium was packed full of young witches, freshmen to seniors to staff members. Everyone was eerily quiet, still shaken from the news of the attack on Zenith (even if it had been resolved).

Ms. Griffin was at her podium, her body stiff and her facial features sharp and tense. Something was beyond wrong. “Cloud Tower witches… I had truly hoped this would be a year without worry of what tomorrow would bring.”

“I had hoped we would be able to focus our energies more freely, learning in… Tamer environment.” That was a laugh. Compared to Red Fountain and Alfea’s courses, Cloud Tower was a survivalist nightmare designed for only the most determined to survive, both socially and magically. (Valkyrie would know, she’s seen Flora’s class schedules over the years, and she knew how Kota whined about Codatorta forcing them on those scouting retreats.)

“That hope, however, has been dashed. Headmaster Saladin, Headmistress Faragonda, the Council, and I have been looking into the attack on Zenith, with permission from King Cryos and the Zenithian guard.” She took a deep breath, watching for her students’ reactions.

Valkyrie could hear the groans from the younger students and worried mumbles from the older students. Crystal swore softly. “There goes our hope at a quiet senior year.”

“Goodbye normalcy.” Lucy muttered.

Griffin raised her hand, silencing the students. “Lady Mandragora, the former Lady of ShadowHaunt, has resurfaced.”

“She was sent to Omega nearly 18 years ago… However, due to the events from last year, it seems she managed to escape.” Griffin took another deep breath, her grip tightening on the podium. “We need to prepare to face her. She’s already made her play for Zenith, it will only be a matter of time before she makes a play for other realms.”

“But we will be strong. We will fight to keep her and her insect army at bay.” She looked to the other teachers. “We will be teaching specialty courses on poisons, antidotes, and insect repellent spells.”

“That said… Dismissed. Head to dinner. And please, don’t worry too much. Mandragora may be a powerful witch, but we are far more powerful. We are Cloud Tower witches.”

Cheers erupted from the students, determination filling the room. Valkyrie couldn’t help but chuckle, giving her own cheers as Lucy and Crystal stood to clap.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The other witches had filed out of the auditorium and toward the cafeteria. There were a few stragglers discussing assignments and changes in schedules with the teachers.

“We’re going to go and grab our table, you coming with?” Crystal asked. Valkyrie shook her head, getting to her feet.

“You girls go ahead… I’m going to have a conversation with our headmistress.” She gave a slight smile, hoping not to worry them as she made her way down the bleachers and to the podium. Griffin was already turned to face her, arms crossed.

“If you’re upset that I didn’t discuss Mandragora with you sooner, I apologize. But we had to be sure.”

Valkyrie shook her head, waving her hand. “That’s not my concern. My concern is why she’s still so loyal to the Ancestral Witches. She’s aware they’re dead, right?”

Griffin shrugged. “If she is, she doesn’t care.” A pause. “Does she know about Darkar and Valtor?” Valkyrie sighed, leaning against the podium.

“I don’t know. Maybe. I know I said something about Valtor being dead anyway…” She groaned, rubbing her temple. “Just… Why does this always seem to happen?”

“Bad luck?” Griffin offered, half-teasing.

“Mom.”

“I know. I know.” She sighed. “I… Don’t know, Val… All I know is that we’re going to have to tough it out this year too…” A faint smile ghosted her mother’s lips. “And we both know that if we can take Valtor, we can take Mandragora.”

“Amen.” Valkyrie grinned, taking her mother’s hand. “Sign me up for the combat classes. I’m going to need to stay sharp.”

Griffin shook her head, clicking her tongue. “You get a limit of three this year. I’m not going to have you frying on me like you nearly did last year.” Valkyrie forced a pout. “I’m not changing my mind, Young Lady.”

“Fine… At least let Discorda give me access to Mandragora’s life book then…” She bit her lip. “For research…?” Griffin paused, debating.

“You get a day with the book. One day. Make it count.”

“Yes ma’am.”


	11. Chapter Eleven: Into the Tomes

  1. **Into The Tomes**



Mandragora’s book was thick and filled to the brim with information. Unfortunately, most of the information was either useless, background, or shit she already knew.

Mandragora was a powerful witch who was once known as Milana. She had been from the realm of Inseca, incredibly adept at working with the insect populations. The witch had even been a leader within the Courts of Inseca…

But one day, while working with the Courts, she caught the eye of Lord Argulus, an immortal knight of ShadowHaunt and loyalist to the Obsidian crown.

They married and had children, who had children, who had children. Age never touching either of them due to the immortality of the Shadow Fire and the need for ShadowHaunt to have a ruler.

Then Argulus turned, promising himself to the Ancestral Witches in exchange for more power, and Milana joined with him, becoming reborn as Lord Darkar and Lady Mandragora.

(And blah, blah, blah. They started trying to take over the realms and blah, blah, blah, the War of Magic.)

Valkyrie groaned, looking away from the book. So much USELESS information…

“What are you working on, My Dragon?” A feminine voice asked, prompting Valkyrie to tense and raise up.

Professor Hildegard. (My Dragon?)

“What did you just call me?” Valkyrie snipped, involuntarily. The only ones to have called her that so far had connections to _them_. Hildegard shook her head, face flushing.

“I… Didn’t mean anything by it… My realm is still… Attached to Obsidian. And we tend to refer to the Dark Dragon as ‘My Dragon’… I wasn’t trying to upset you.” She looked to the book. “Interesting read… But I don’t think it’s appropriate material for any of our courses.”

Valkyrie shut the book, placing it in her bag. “It’s better to know your enemy than it is to go in blind.” She reminded, grabbing her backpack. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a Monster Taming exam to study for.” She made stood, making her way to the door.

But she could still feel her professor’s gaze on her, the words ‘My Dragon’ echoing in her head.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Sounds to me like she’s telling the truth, Val… Don’t read into it too much.” Lucy warned, finishing up her nails. A dark purple color Crystal had picked out for her called ‘Poisoned Passion’.

Crystal hummed, stretching out over the spare bed Lucy had in her room. “I don’t know… Tecna was suspicious of Avalon during sophomore year and ended up being right… I mean, he wasn’t the Angel of Destruction, but he wasn’t the real Professor Avalon either.”

Valkyrie groaned, looking Mandragora’s book over again, her mind not really into it. “Maybe I should talk to Mom… Maybe there’s a reason she hired Hildegard?”

“Like that she’s a good teacher?” Lucy shrugged. “Or at least, Lunilla and Franz think she’s good.”

“Maybe I am overthinking it…” Valkyrie admitted, her eyes scanning over a page from Mandragora’s book. “Son of a bitch…”

Crystal frowned, jumping up. “What? Find something we can use against old Mandragora?” Crystal asked.

“Or something useful in any way?” Lucy asked.

Valkyrie swallowed. “She killed Musa’s mother.” Silence.

They were so silent, a pin could drop. “Musa’s… Are you sure?”

“I thought her mom got sick and that was why she died…?” Valkyrie shook her head.

“She was sick… Because Mandragora poisoned her. There was this… Attack on Melody and Matlin got poisoned by one of Mandragora’s pets. It didn’t kill her right away, there was a shot that sort of kept it at bay for a few years… But it did kill her.” Valkyrie shut the book up, grabbing her bag. “I’ve got to get to Alfea… Musa needs to know.”

Lucy grabbed her wrist. “Hold up. Are you sure that’s a good idea? You might just be making a bad situation worse.”

Crystal shook her head. “Musa could try to go off and fight Mandragora on her own. You might be better off _not_ saying anything.”

Valkyrie glowered, looking between Lucy and Crystal. “No. Musa deserves to know.” A hidden anger rose up in her. “I’ve had so much information _withheld_ from me in the name of _keeping me safe_ that I can’t do it to someone else. You know why? Because shit like this always comes out, one way or another. And I’d rather it come from me than from Mandragora.”

She got to her feet, bag in hand as she walked out of Lucy’s room. “She deserves to know the truth.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie walked up to Alfea’s main gate, watching for someone she knew to let her in through the anti-dark magic field.

She just needed someone to let her in…

Sooner rather than later…

She glared, starting to feel impatient until she noticed two pixies flying about. Cherie and Jolly. “Hey! Jolly? Cherie?” Valkyrie waved her hands, getting the attention of both pixies.

They flew over, both giving grins. “What brings you here?”

“A date?”

“Or your cousin?”

“Or are you bringing something for Faragonda?”

Valkyrie shook her head, waving her hand. “Nothing like that guys… Look, I just need to talk to the Winx okay?” Valkyrie tried to explain. “It’s about Mandragora.”

The pixies shared a look. “Come on in… I think they’re in the library right now.” Jolly gestured for her to come in. Valkyrie stepped inside, giving a nod to Jolly.

“Thank you. Um… All of them?”

“I think so. Bloom and Concorda sort of enlisted them to try and find out stuff about Domino.” Cherie hummed. “Though I’m not sure what all they’ll find…”

“Hopefully, whatever Bloom was looking for.” Valkyrie gave a smile and wave. “See you girls later.” She waved them off, making her way toward the side door for Alfea.

(At this point, Valkyrie knew exactly where the library was, no help required…)

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cherie and Jolly weren’t kidding. All six members of the Winx (along with the enlisted help of Morgan and Concorda) were nose deep in books from all over the realms.

“Seems I missed a study group.” She teased, leaning against the door frame as all eyes drew themselves to her.

Morgan rolled her eyes. “Look here, cousin, we’re trying to figure out how to bring a dead realm back to life… And unless you’re going to be of help, be gone.”

“And you’re not taking Flora. We need her more.” Layla fired. Valkyrie gave a huff, feigning hurt as she draped herself over Flora and the fairy’s chair.

“How could you wound me so?”

Bloom chuckled, tossing a book at her. “Come on, Val, it wouldn’t kill you to help us out. Especially since _you_ came to _us._ ”

Musa frowned. “Why are you here anyway? We miss something?”

“Or did you find out something?” Tecna asked. Valkyrie sighed, moving to raise up and fish inside of her bag.

Flora accommodated, holding Valkyrie tight in her lap while she dug out the book. Concorda gave a gasp. “Mandragora’s life book? How did you get your hands on that?”

“It pays to be the daughter of the Headmistress.” Valkyrie explained, looking to Bloom. “Unfortunately, there isn’t much information in this book that our Heads haven’t already told us or that haven’t been in other history books…”

“So you came to tell us you found zilch?” Stella huffed, crossing her arms. “That’s helpful.”

“No… I came to tell Musa-” she paused, looking to the musical fairy. She bit her lip, her eyes looking away. “Musa… You… May wanna sit down for this.”

“Okay…?” Musa got off the stepladder, moving back to her chair by Tecna. “What’s up?”

“You know how your mom was sick all the time…? Well I figured out why… Mandragora poisoned your mom, Musa. And I’m pretty sure she’s the reason your mom didn’t make it.” Valkyrie looked away, not wanting to meet Musa’s eyes. “I’m sorry…”

Musa gave a mirthless laugh, Tecna and Layla wrapping their arms around her. “Don’t… Apologize Val… You didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know.” She wiped at her eyes, crossing her legs. “My dad… Told me everything after you guys faced Mandragora down on Zenith… He didn’t want her to use it against me.”

“Which is why you wanted to bring it to her attention too, isn’t it?” Flora asked. Valkyrie gave a slow nod.

“I didn’t want to keep secrets…”

“And I appreciate that.” Musa reached over, taking one of Valkyrie’s hands in hers. “I do. But it’s not something she can use. I already made sure of that.”

“Besides, she’s not going to _use_ any of us. We’re going to bring her down, just like we’ve done everyone else who’s faced us.” Bloom grinned, that determined tone in her voice.

“And we’ll make her regret ever messing with Zenith or ShadowHaunt or anywhere else.” Stella vowed.

“She won’t know what hit her.” Morgan grinned. “Now… As proud as I am that we’re all on the same page… Can we get back to researching? I’m kind of hyped on figuring out how to save a lost realm and I can’t do that if we can’t even figure out _what happened_.”

The girls laughed, going back to their books. Concorda handed one to Valkyrie. “If you’re staying here, you’re helping us out.”

“I do owe Red a debt.” Valkyrie tipped her head toward Bloom, giving her a teasing smile.

“When we save Domino, you can consider us even.” Bloom winked.

“Will do.”


	12. Chapter Twelve: Learning Pains

  1. **Learning Pains**



She managed to dodge the rock the stone creature threw at her, ducking in behind a boulder of the field. (Ediltrude had opted for a field alteration spell to set up new terrains for the witches to fight at, and Valkyrie’s had been a mountainous arena with stone creatures and storm harpies.)

Lightning forced her out from her hiding place, the storm harpy shrieking in glee as it flew down toward her.

She glowered, feeling for her inner flames and igniting a ring of fire around her as a protective shield. The stone monster was having none of it, throwing his massive boulders toward her flames to put them out.

‘ _Focus! You need to focus!_ ’ Her dragon growled. She wanted to retort at him, but decided against it as she let her flames lick her skin.

She was a conduit, a generator of negative energy and dark magic. She didn’t have to draw her power from her classmates or the energy of Cloud Tower. She could do this.

The witch made a running go to jump on the back of the stone monster, hands gripping it tightly as she let the flames consume her body, steam rising and the rock the creature was made of began to melt. The storm harpy tried to make a dive at her, to force her away from its partner, but it was too late.

Valkyrie allowed her flames to take form, a projection of her dragon roaring to life as it destroyed the harpy and the stone monster, turning them both back into monster powder and destroying the spell on the field.

She gave a groan, falling to her knees as she caught her breath, feeling a warmth run down her hands. (Blood. She’d cut herself on the stone creature’s back. Great.)

“A little aggressive, aren’t we, Ms. Sylvane?” Professor Ediltrude chided, arms crossed. Valkyrie forced herself to her feet and forced a smile to her face.

“What can I say? I don’t like feeling cornered.” Valkyrie shrugged it off, heading back to her seat on the bleachers.

“I do believe a trip to Nurse Mal is in order… Your hands are cut.” Ediltrude pointed out her bleeding hands, causing the witch to sigh.

“They can be healed without Nurse Mal.” She assured, feeling for her flames again. This time a softer glow surrounded her hands, the cuts healing themselves up. “Good as new.” She grinned, taking her seat by Crystal.

Professor Ediltrude sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. (No doubt muttering something about her definitely being her mother’s child…)

“Alright, Ms. Ritz, you’re next.”

Lucy let out a sigh. “Here goes nothing.” She muttered, getting to her feet and heading toward the field.

Ediltrude smirked, raising her hand as the barrier came up around the field and the field shifted into a winter wonderland. Ice goblins and snow crabs formed, along with a yeti. “Good luck, Ms. Ritz.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie frowned, watching her phone.

No new messages. No calls. And no emails. Nothing. Not even a hologram.

She shoved it aside, opening up her desk’s cabinet to pull out her notebooks and the tomes she’d collected for her research project.

It was perfectly fine if Flora had forgotten about their plans. It was fine she wasn’t hearing back from the fairy. It was all _fine_.

After all, it gave her time to work on her research project and open up a new layer to her magic and soul. And that was important work, work that would allow her to graduate and…

She let out a growl of frustration, the lights in her room threatening to blow themselves out and shatter to the ground.

Something was wrong. Deadly wrong.

She could feel it in her flames, in her soul.

‘ _Bloom…_ ’

If Flora was in trouble, Bloom would be in on it. Which meant she needed to connect to Bloom… Right? Right.

Valkyrie closed her eyes and crossed her legs, her focus turning to her breathing and to her flames. (And to Bloom’s flames. She had to feel for her other half, her counterpart. What were they doing?)

_Melody was overtaken by locusts and swarms of gium wasps. Giant beetleroaches and catapoes were attacking the people._

_The Winx were there, transformed and trying to save the people and the buildings. And trying to stop Mandragora._

_Princess Galatea had even joined in the fight with the Melodian Royal Guard and her parents, determined to keep Mandragora at bay._

_(Galatea seemed to have had earned her Enchantix over the summer. Her long blonde hair was longer and braided, musical note pins threaded into her hair. A pale-blue one shouldered dress flowed off her body, golden sandals wrapped around her feet. Large golden wings inscribed with shades of blue and purple, a treble clef necklace around her neck.)_

_Valkyrie even recognized a few CT witches fighting alongside the fairies, all lead by Lucrezia and Mona._

_The fight was seemingly endless, but it was easy to see Mandragora was weakening. And in a puff of blue smoke, she was gone._

Valkyrie groaned, falling out of her chair and onto the floor. Too much… Too much too fast.

Cheshire rushed to her side, laying his head on top of her chest. She gave a slight smile, rubbing his head. “It’s okay, Cheshire… It’s going to be just fine. Just a little mishap…” She rose up, holding the cat close.

(At least the others were okay for the moment. Mandragora didn’t win Melody. Right?)


	13. Chapter Thirteen: Eureka Moments

  1. **Eureka Moments**



_Legs crossed. Eyes closed. Mind opened. Inner flames ignited and ready._

_Valkyrie focused on her breathing, feeling more relaxed after her weekend ‘getaway’ with her friends (and Flora), meaning this exercise Pandora was putting them through shouldn’t be difficult._

_It was all about connecting. Finding her flames. Finding her source. Her magic._

_The Dragon Fire. She had the Dragon Fire, a true fire elemental. Desire and passion, heat and warmth. Those were her where her focus should lie, where she should draw her power from._

‘We are the Dark Dragon.’ _Her dragon softly reminded her, his own memories flooding into her mind’s eye._

_Death. She was an elemental of death as well. Destruction. Chaos. A harbinger of things to come._

Cackling. She could hear cackling in this distance, no…

Shouting. Someone was yelling.

 _Kersplash_.

Valkyrie growled, jumping out of her seat as her flames spread through her body drying her off. “What the hell?!” She snipped.

Minerva. Dark skin, curly dark hair, and even darker eyes. A true witch from Andros. The Androsian frowned, an orb of water floating around her. “The professor said to cool you down. So, I did.” Minerva shrugged.

Someone clearing their throat had Valkyrie looking to the front. Professor Pandora looked cross, her eyebrows knitted and a frown on her face. “I know I said we were going to be diving in deep to find our inner power, Ms. Sylvane, but there is some magic we _don_ ’ _t_ delve into.”

Valkyrie frowned, tilting her head. “Excuse me? I was _delving_ into my inner flames.” She argued. Her eyes caught the looks from her classmates, some wide-eyed from fear or awe, some looking away from her, and some still focused on their own inner power.

And Crystal and Lucy… They looked worried.

“Wasn’t I?” Valkyrie asked, her voice softer than it had been.

Pandora let out a sigh. “No. You weren’t. Or at least, not any sort of flames I’ve seen before.” The older witch looked her over. “But it’s something we’re going to discuss after class. No need in further disruption. Take notes on what you experienced and we’ll look at them later.”

Valkyrie bowed her head, trying to ignore the whispers as she sat back down. “Yes ma’am.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Discorda was of no use. Thousands upon thousands of spellbooks, history books, tomes, and archives, and not a single thing on Obsidian or Domino.

(But other dead planets had their books. Rozz, Rot, Nima, Bloa. Several others.)

‘ _Keep your breathing regulated. Keep your body and mind calm._ ’ Her dragon warned. Valkyrie could feel him, wrapping himself around her on the inside, trying to keep her just warm enough.

‘ _Can’t help it. I can’t stop thinking about that fiasco this morning._ ’

‘ _We are what we are. Nothing can change that._ ’ He chided. ‘ _The sooner you accept that, the better._ ’

(Yeah right. Who wanted to accept that they were death and chaos?)

But it made sense. Bloom and her dragon were life. Order. And she was the opposite, the counterpart.

Two halves of…

“That’s it.” Valkyrie hopped up from the library desk, startling Discorda into the air.

“What’s got you excited all of a sudden?” Discorda glared, fixing her hat. “And in such a manner…? Honestly I think I preferred you moping about.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, giving a smile. “I think I might have cracked a code in my senior research. And in finding Marion and Oritel.” She grabbed her bag, putting her notebooks back inside. “And I really need to get to Alfea before curfew so I can work with Bloom.”

Discorda shook her head, tsking. “I’ll never understand why you want to meddle in such affairs… It’s better for everyone if-”

“But it’s not.” Valkyrie interrupted. “It’s not better for Marion and Oritel to stay gone. It’s not better for Domino to be a frozen wasteland…” She shook her head. “There’s a balance, Discorda… One that’s been tipped for far too long and this… This may be our chance to fix it.”

“I’m just saying, if Domino is brought back, Obsidian will have to be too.” The pixie gave Valkyrie a look. “And I have my doubts about you being ready for that sort of… Responsibility. Given all the baggage, that is…”

Dammit. The pixie was right. Domino and Obsidian were two halves, just like Bloom and Valkyrie were.

“They never said doing the right thing was easy.” Valkyrie reasoned, taking out a wrapped goodie bag. “It’s Linfean double cinnamon… I figured I owed you for letting me use the archives.” Valkyrie set the bagged cookie down, watching as Discorda gave a smile.

“I do love working with you.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie was headed out of Cloud Tower’s lobby and toward the main door. Curfew would be in a few hours and she had to work with Bloom. She had to.

“Where do you think you’re going?” A familiar voice asked. The Headmistress. Great.

“To Alfea. I think I had a breakthrough and Bloom needs to know.” Valkyrie admitted, turning on her heels to face her mother.

She didn’t look happy. Arms crossed, fingers tapping at her elbows. A deep frown. (She and Pandora talked. She knew about class…)

“I think you’re going to want to wait on that. We need to have a chat about what happened in Pandora’s classroom.”

Valkyrie glared. “I followed her instructions to a T. I did just as she told us to.” She took a deep breath, feeling her flames coming to rest beneath her skin. (No. NO. No. Not now. She needed to stay calm.)

Her mother’s façade seemed to drop, worry coming into her eyes. “I know you were only following instructions, but this is something we _do_ need to talk about.”

Valkyrie sighed, giving a nod. “Fine. Fine. Let’s get this over with.” She walked up to her mother, letting her lead the way toward her office.

(Sometimes it really sucked being the Headmistress’s daughter. Really sucked.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Death is an element… Technically. And apparently, it’s my element. I didn’t mean to cause such a disturbance tapping into it though.” Valkyrie argued.

Griffin pinched the bridge of her nose. “I know. I know. But you almost hurt some of your classmates and Pandora had to use Minerva to break you out of the trance.”

“I was following Pandora’s instructions! She said we needed to tap into our inner power, and I did.”

“For most witches, that would be their power source. Fire. Earth. Animals. Poisons. Ice… Not-”

“Death? Yeah. I got that. But its not like I chose it.” Valkyrie reminded her mother. “The Dark Dragon was an elemental being born of fire. Unlike his Light-Based sister though, he was an all-consuming flame, evolving into the harbinger of death.” Valkyrie started the tale.

“Which lead to the Light Dragon becoming an all-purifying flame who evolved into the creator of life.” Griffin finished. “I’m well aware of the legends.”

Valkyrie sighed, slumping in her seat. “Great. We’re aware of what’s going on. What does that mean for me and Pandora’s classes? I…” She paused, her hands clutching the armrests. “I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

Griffin stood, placing a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “Use her class-time as a resource period instead. Work on your project instead and any progress you make can be used for your grades in her class.”

She gave a nod. “If you think that’ll work.”

“It will.” Griffin looked to the sky, tsking. “I don’t know what you and Bloom were going to work on, but you may wish to wait until tomorrow… I don’t want you caught after the barrier goes up, especially with Mandragora around…”

Valkyrie frowned. “How did you guys stop her the first time?”

“Patience… And a group of warriors immune to most poisons…” Griffin admitted. “But that shouldn’t be a worry for you right now.” Valkyrie gave a slight smile.

“Mom… Have you met me?”

“I have… Which is why I’m doing my best to parent the ‘me’ out of you… So far I’ve not been successful, but there’s always hope.” Griffin teased. Valkyrie chuckled.

“Sure there is.”


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Elements of Life and Death

  1. **Elements of Life and Death**



“So why are we all the way out here in the mountains? Don’t get me wrong, the view is gorgeous, but it’s kinda far off.” Bloom asked, taking a seat on one of the boulders and setting her bag down.

Valkyrie gave a bit of a huffed groan, setting her own bag to the side and taking a seat on the ground.

Cool rock against her skin helped with her heated body. “Because we’re going to be tapping into primordial magic and I’d rather we not hurt anyone on accident…”

“Gloomy Wood was far enough for that.” Bloom pointed out, a teasing smile coming to her lips. “But then we could accidentally hurt the trees and you’d never hear the end of it from Flora.” Valkyrie flipped the fairy off, giving a huff.

“If you’re going to act like this, perhaps we shouldn’t even test my theory.” Valkyrie warned, grabbing a water bottle from her bag.

The thoughts of finding Marion and Oritel, saving Domino, stopping Mandragora all swirled inside of her head and it had her flames boiling her alive. She needed relief. (Hopefully it would come.)

“What is your theory anyway?” Bloom asked, taking a sip from her own canteen. Bright orange and decorated in hearts, most likely something Stella had given her. “I know it has to do with primordial magic and connecting to it, but you never really went into more detail than that.”

Valkyrie licked her lips, trying to think of how explain it to the fairy. “You know there five _known_ primordial beings, right? Not counting for the dark and light sides and counterparts?”

“Right. Professor Avalon was teaching us about them… Fire, Air, Water, Earth, and Spirit. Or something like that.” Bloom shrugged. “What about it?”

“There’s seven. They forgot Life and Death.” Valkyrie explained. “Life and Death are the original primordials, which spawned Fire, Air, Water, Earth, and Spirit. Which spawned the rest of the magic of the Magical Dimension.”

“Dark magic came from Death, light magic from Life, and then add in whichever element the magic is most closely related too. My theory is trying to break down our magical barriers to get to our true magic roots, to break through and get in touch with the pure elemental essences of our magic.”

“Which for us, is literally Life and Death because we are the Keepers of the Dragon Fire.” Valkyrie explained, noticing how Bloom was looking at her with both awe and wonder. (And amusement? Shit.)

She had managed to get to her feet and her arms and hands had been animated and creating small flame charts to demonstrate for Bloom. All without her realizing it. “Great… I’ve become my mother…” She muttered, feeling a flush on her face.

Bloom shook her head and waved her hands, jumping to her feet. “Don’t get upset! That was an awesome thesis thing… Your theory sounds incredible and if we can prove it… That’ll open up a whole knew way of teaching magic.” She frowned.

“But I thought we were from the element of Fire? Aren’t we…?” Bloom asked. Valkyrie shook her head.

“No. We’re Life and Death. The fire comes from the Phoenix Fire. Or it’s darker counterpart, the Shadow Phoenix. Which we’ve faced.”

“And then there’s the Water Stars who are the elementals of Water. Zephyr Wings are the elementals of Air. Mother Nature is of course the elemental of Earth, which is drawn into two categories, plant life and their ecosystems and literal rocks and gems. And then there’s the Manticore Call which represents Spirit…”

“And Spirit is being able to control or talk to animals and deal with illusions and ghosts and divination.” Valkyrie recounted, frowning at herself when she noticed her hands were doing the motions again. “This is what happens when my mother and I spend a bit too much time together.” Valkyrie flushed, shaking her head.

Bloom chuckled, putting an arm around Valkyrie’s shoulder. “That’s the point of the Day of the Rose though.” She teased. “And hey, at least you know you’ll make a great teacher.” Valkyrie snorted.

“Right. As if I’d be allowed my own classroom.” She shook her head, ducking out of Bloom’s hold. “Anyway… We’re wasting daylight and this spell will really only work during dusk or dawn.”

“Dusk or dawn?”

“When light and dark touch the realms at the same time? Basically the only points during the day when light and dark magic are equal?” Valkyrie reminded her, grabbing a few items from her bag. “Did you bring what I asked?”

“I did… Though I’m still confused how this is all going to go… Or what it is we’re doing…”

“We’re tapping into our primordial magic essences as Life and Death. From there, we’re going to figure out where your parents are. Even caught between the worlds of the living and dead, we’ll be able to find them with this spell…”

“If it works?”

“If it works.” Valkyrie created the salt circles, making sure her sigils were correct. “Line up the candles and make sure to add in the petals…”

“Like this?” Bloom placed them in a sigil similar to one Valkyrie had made in the salt.

“Perfect. And then I’ll dab the water around the edges and we can begin.”

“Great.”

“Make sure to transform. You’ll need your Enchantix to focus your magic.”

Bloom gave a nod, a bright light surrounding her before it disappeared. No longer was she in her jeans and blouse, but in her Enchantix dress, wings fluttering slowly.

Perfect.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They stood in the center of the circle, hands clasped together, facing one another. Just as dusk started to show, Valkyrie and Bloom began the chant, voices low and steady.

She could feel something awakening in her, could tell from how Bloom’s wings fluttered that she was feeling it too.

Something coiling around them, entering into their hearts and souls. It made them breathe in sync with one another, made them hyperaware of their surroundings…

The mountains faded away into something else, back into the void, two familiar figures coiled around one another.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_It was strange, watching the final battle from this point of view._

_Above the battle, protected in an orb. No one could see or hear them but each other. Bloom held tight to her hand, a look of determination on her face as she watched._

_Swords clashed. Demons attacked. The Army of Darkness was struggling against the Company of Light._

_Ice crabs, storm harpies, Coven members. All fighting to tear Domino apart._

_And in the center was Valtor and Marion and Oritel. The former Dragon Keepers fought flame to flame, Marion’s wings fluttering fast and angry as she dodged Valtor’s blasts and flames._

_Oritel kept his sword drawn and did his best to get Valtor’s attention to keep him away from Marion, to no avail._

_And soon… The Ancestral Witches got involved. They charged up for a major attack, Valtor’s own magic blending into it._

_Marion and Oritel joined forces themselves. Flames against flames. Primordial against primordial._

_There was an explosion, smoke taking over the field._

_Someone yelled out a single name, one that Valkyrie felt was familiar to her._

_“Hagen! Get help!”_

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bloom and Valkyrie gasped for air, taking in the fresh mountain breeze compared to the smoke and ash that had filled their lungs not long ago.

Both fell to their knees, holding to each other. (Okay, more Bloom holding to Valkyrie, the redhead was crying, mourning people she’d never met.)

Valkyrie tried to soothe her, rubbing her back and murmuring how it would be okay, how they could fix this.

“Bloom. Bloom… I know that was hard… But we have a lead now. A name. Hagen.” Valkyrie tried to get Bloom to look her in the eyes. “We have a lead.”

Bloom gave a saddened smile, eyes still filled with tears. “We have a lead.”


	15. Chapter Fifteen: Hagen the Blacksmith

  1. **Hagen the Blacksmith**



Valkyrie filed into Alfea’s auditorium, right behind her mother and her covenmates. Faragonda already had the Winx, Morgan, and Mirta waiting on the bleachers. And Saladin had the guys with him.

“Seems we’ve started a party.” Lucy muttered, taking her seat by Mirta.

“More like our investigation has prompted a Company of Light lesson… Something we’re used to.” Valkyrie shrugged; Helia, Morgan, Crystal, and Kota all giving nods of agreement.

Growing up as the child of Ms. Griffin, she had had plenty of these lessons. All from a place of concern and worry.

“So what’s this about?” Riven asked, looking to the others. 

“Something about what Bloom and Valkyrie found out during their trip to the mountains.” Sky answered.

“About Domino?” Nabu asked, looking to Layla and Bloom.

“Something like that…” Bloom admitted.

“More like they learned a name.”

“A name that sounded really familiar.” Valkyrie reminded. “I just can’t remember why it sounded familiar.”

There was a loud clap at the center of the auditorium, the group turning their attention toward the school Heads. “We’d like to have your attention.” Saladin ordered.

“It’s come to our attention that Bloom and Valkyrie may have found a lead in the name of Hagen.” Faragonda’s voice seemed to waver at the name, Saladin and Griffin both giving her looks.

(That was why it was familiar… Hagen and Faragonda had been married… And then were separated. She remembered Faragonda staying with her and her mother for a few weeks…)

“Hagen Gwenal. A master swordsman and an incredible blacksmith.” Saladin looked to his boys. “At Red Fountain, we use some of his designs in our weapons. We turn them into laser-based weapons instead of steel or other metal, but that’s just because of who we are.”

“He even had a personal forge on his home realm.” Griffin admitted. “One that I… Helped destroy… and then helped rebuild.” She looked to Faragonda, wanting to know if the fairy wanted to speak up.

“Hagen was also the right-hand to Oritel and Marion, and a personal adviser to Oritel himself.” Faragonda explained. “And he was your godfather Bloom… Just as I was your godmother. And we failed you.” Faragonda bit her lip.

Bloom frowned. “You never failed me…”

“We didn’t look hard enough, Bloom. We… We lost you and Daphne and we couldn’t find either of you.”

“And Hagen…” Faragonda took a breath. “He couldn’t stand not knowing… So he left. He left to go and either find you or find your parents or your aunt. He didn’t care, so long as he found someone from the Domino royal family.”

Griffin patted her friend’s shoulder, her head down. “I’m just as at fault if Faragonda is… I was tasked with making sure you and Daphne were safe… I had you both locked away in the Nether, a form of the pocket dimensions we use to move from dorms to homes. But after the battle, when we returned, you were both gone.”

“We thought Daphne took you and hid out, that she’d come out after things settled… But it never happened.” Saladin finished.

“But we knew you had to be alive… Or that the Light Dragon had picked a new host… Otherwise-”

“My dragon would have wreaked havoc without someone to keep him in balance.” Valkyrie finished for her mother, arms crossed.

“But you never looked at Earth?” Bloom asked.

“We never thought to. It’s a magically dead planet. There was no reason to look at it.” Saladin admitted.

Brandon frowned. “Okay. So Hagen is personal… And he went looking for Marion and Oritel right? So maybe he’s got something in his notes or whatever?”

“He may have a few leads, we’d just need to go and talk to him.” Timmy pressed his glasses up. “Right?”

“But we don’t know where he is. Hagen could be anywhere looking for Marion and Oritel… Or he could be… Gone. There’s no guarantees with him.” Faragonda explained, making sure to enunciate. She wanted them to know what they would be getting themselves into should they go down this road.

“True… But his notes would still be around. Right?” Tecna asked. “We could go to his forge and look for clues. Any clues.”

“And then we can find my parents and they can help us stop Mandragora.” Bloom spoke, voice full of fire.

The Heads gave each other a look. “If we do allow this, you need to be aware of the danger. Hagen was fond of placing traps and robotic guards.” Griffin reminded them.

“And Hoggar isn’t the most welcoming realm… It’s cold and tends to have blizzards this time of year.”

“And the people are a bit… Rough around the edges and not the warmest lot.”

The group looked to Bloom, giving smiles and nods. “We’ve handled worse.”

“What’s the game plan?”


	16. Chapter Sixteen: Hoggar

  1. **Hoggar**



“Guess the teachers weren’t kidding… This place just _looks_ cold.” Musa pulled her red parka tighter, giving a full-body shudder.

Timmy and Tecna shared a look and gave a shrug. “We’re used to the cold.”

“Yeah, this doesn’t look too bad. Compared to Zenith’s winter’s anyway.”

“Maybe a sixteen percent polar difference?”

“Or even thirty if you take the wind chill into consideration.” The two rambled off, trying to calculate in their heads just how different Hoggar and Zenith’s weather was.

Helia frowned, keeping his hands steady on the controls. “Timmy, dude, the ship can handle this weather, right?”

Timmy swore, moving away from Tecna and going back to the pilot seat. “We should be able to. But just in case,” he turned to Kota, “power up the heating units near the engines, we don’t want anything to freeze.”

Kota gave a salute. “Aye, aye Captain Timmy.” He turned on his heels, heading out of the main control room.

“Sky, Brandon, how are our visuals?”

“Crystal clear.”

“So far, so good.”

“And any hostiles detected, Riven?”

“None so far.”

The boys began to drone out, their focus purely on the ship.

Musa had moved to huddle by Layla, the Androsian princess not handling the cold too well either. Valkyrie hummed, feeling Flora take her arm and wrap it around herself. “I don’t see how you, Bloom, and Stella aren’t freezing.” Flora whined, gesturing to the three of them.

The only three without true ‘winter gear’, just sweaters and long pants and boots.

Bloom and Valkyrie shared a look. “Dragon Fire.” That was their shared answer. Their inner dragons kept them warm, their flames kicked up just a notch in this colder environment.

Stella shrugged. “My powers just keep me nice and toasty. And my skin glowing.” The blonde grinned, turning toward Brandon. “Right babe?”

“Your skin is absolutely flawless, Stella.” Brandon gave her a quick wink and smile before turning his attention back to his monitor.

Layla gave a bit of a shaky laugh through her chattering teeth. “I’d hope it is considering how much shit she puts on it.”

“Yeah, Stel’s got like… Fifteen different skin products she puts on.” Musa teased. Stella gave a pout and dramatically crossed her arms and looked away.

“When we’re in our fifties and I still look slammin’, you’ll regret ever mocking me and my beauty.”

“Assuming we make it to our fifties, you mean?” Valkyrie pointed out.

Crystal groaned. “We’re NOT having THAT conversation right now, Val.”

“Especially not while we’re in a metal death trap and trying to stop one of the Ancestral Witches’ puppets.” Lucy swore. “That’s like… Infinite bad luck talk.”

“Metal death trap?” Stella’s face dropped, her eyes looking to the windows and the skies.

Snow was coming down pretty harshly, visibility at a bare minimum. “Shit.”

“Stella. We’re going to be okay.” Bloom tried to soothe her friend, pulling Stella to her.

Lucy frowned. “You’ve got wings, fly constantly, and yet you’re afraid of heights?”

“Fears aren’t rational!” Stella argued. “And you’d be scared of heights too, if your Grandpa’s pet dragon flung you from sixty feet in the air.” She gave a whine. “It was terrifying.”

Bloom shushed her, rubbing her arms and pulling her close. “Stella… We’re not going to let you fall.”

“Bloom’s right. We’d catch you.” Mirta reassured.

“Or teleport you.”

The blonde sniffled a bit, touched. “You guys are awes-”

There was a major crash and explosion, Stella and Bloom falling into the rest of the girls. The guys swore, trying desperately to put the ship back on course.

Shouting. There was shouting for Nabu and Riven to fire. For the girls to hold onto something sturdy.

There was a loud crunching noise, the sirens inside the ship going off and flashing red. “What’s going on?!” Bloom yelled.

“I can’t explain it! There’s a huge swarm of giant flies just… gunning for us.” Sky answered.

“Mandragora! She must be around here somewhere!” Tecna called, looking from Bloom to Timmy. “Course of action?”

Timmy seemed worried, his grip tightening further on the ship’s controls. “Girls, can you fly in this?”

The fairies shared a look. “I think most of us can. Why?”

“Get rid of these bugs.” Timmy told them, turning to Nabu. “And I need you to get to Kota and help figure out the best place for a crash landing.” Timmy then turned to the witches.

“And if you guys could shield us?”

“On it.”

Bloom, Stella, and Tecna shifted into their fairy forms, flying out from the hangar. Nabu and Layla went toward the engines to get Kota for their crash landing.

Valkyrie clasped hands with Lucy and Crystal, focusing on the ship.

Protection. They needed to be protected while they landed. They needed everyone to be safe, not sorry.

Protected. Safe. Safe.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The landing was beyond rough, the ship only surviving thanks to Nabu, Kota, and Layla’s efforts at finding a soft snow bank. (And thanks to the protective crystal shield Valkyrie and her coven had created.)

Bloom, Stella, and Tecna had managed to run the bugs off, landing beside the ship as their magic powered down.

Back in their warm clothes, no more Enchantix.

“So… Any ideas where we are? Or what the hell happened out there?” Riven asked, looking from person to person.

Valkyrie frowned. “If I had to guess, Mandragora’s been here and left a few pets to deter help… But that’s just me.”

“Or maybe she’s here for Hagen too? Like a revenge thing?” Bloom shrugged, worrying with a loose strand of hair. “He was part of the Company of Light…”

“And helped put her away in Omega.” Stella pointed out. “But if she is here after him…”

“Then we need to hurry and hope we find him first.” Musa groaned. “Which would be easier if we knew for sure we're on Hoggar.”

Timmy raised his hand. “We are on Hoggar…”

“Then where’s the people? Or the villages?” Crystal asked. “Wouldn’t there be nosy people coming to see why a ship just fell from the sky? Or that would be wondering about all the noise?”

“Unless we’re in an uninhabited part of Hoggar.” Lucy sighed. “Which would be _our_ luck.”

Mirta closed her eyes, placing her hands on the ground. A soft aura came over her, a pastel pink. “I think this place is a forest… Just sort of glazed over with snow. But there is life here…”

“Just wildlife.” Morgan glanced around. “On the bright side, our crash didn’t hurt anyone… Or damage any property. That would have been hell to explain to our professors… And to the people of Hoggar.”

Brandon groaned. “But it means we’re far from civilization and from anyone who might be able to help fix the ship… It took some heavy damage back there.”

Helia rubbed his neck. “I’ve never met flies so vicious before… Or so strong…”

Timmy brought out a tablet, using it to scan over the ship’s hull. “With a little time and a little help… I might be able to repair the ship… At least enough to get us back to Magix…”

“Perfect. We can split into two teams. One to find Hagen, the other to fix the ship.” Bloom grinned. Flora bit her lip.

“Are you sure splitting up is a good idea? In this weather? With Mandragora lurking around somewhere?”

“We need to find Hagen before she does, Flora… And we can’t do that if we have to wait around.”

“And the ship needs to be repaired to get us all back to Magix.” Crystal agreed. Riven frowned.

“Couldn’t you magic users just… Teleport us home? That way we can _all_ go looking for Hagen and his forge?” He argued.

Valkyrie pinched the bridge of her nose. “Unfortunately, magic is tricky like that… Even with all of us combining our magic together, we couldn’t teleport everyone _and_ the ship to Magix. We’d all have to be at full strength for that.”

“And considering our little skirmish with the flies, using magic to protect against an even worse crash landing, and the chill deep in our bones from this realm… Not gonna happen.” Layla wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck. “Which means if we all stay together; we’d all need to work on repairs and hope to find Hagen another time…”

“Or split up. Which isn’t the best plan either… But most likely our only option where we all win…” Sky looked to Bloom. “Guess we’re splitting up.”

“Guess we are.” Bloom looked the group over. “Those who are more… Tech inclined and good at engineering and repairing should stay and help Timmy… The rest of us are going to hunt for the forge and Hagen.”

“And hopefully stop Mandragora in her tracks.” Valkyrie added. “So, who’s going where?” She asked, arms crossed.

(Hopefully Hagen could wait just a bit longer… Just until they sorted this out and found his forge. He could handle her that long…? Couldn’t he?)


	17. Chapter Seventeen: The Forge

  1. **The Forge**



Riven led the group, his PDA opened to the map of Hoggar and Hagen’s Forge was encircled in red. Right where the teachers had said it would be.

“So, what’s the plan when we get there? Just have Bloom go up to him and be like, ‘hey, I’m your goddaughter and I need your help to find my parents’ or what?” Riven asked, looking back to the rest of the group.

Bloom frowned, opening her mouth to protest before shutting it. “Ah… We don’t have a plan. Great.” Riven groaned. “Great…”

“You want a plan so bad, Riven? Come up with one yourself.” Stella argued. “Just be glad we even made it _this_ far.”

“Through sheer dumb luck and a little magic.” Riven snipped. Valkyrie crossed her arms.

“I’m pretty sure it’s been more than that, Riven.” She shook her head. “How close are we anyway?”

Riven checked the map again, tilting his head. “About fifteen more minutes away… We should be able to see the gates. Which are probably guarded by his automatons…”

“I’m sure we can crack a few robots.” Crystal gave a smile. “It wouldn’t be the hardest thing to do.”

“And we can fly passed the gates. And of course, carry you and Sky.” Lucy teased.

Riven rolled his eyes while Sky chuckled. “No shame in being carried by magic, Riven.”

“Riiiight.” Musa draped herself over Riven playfully, giving him a kiss.

“I promise not to drop you.” He flushed, his grip on the PDA tightening.

“I’d hope you wouldn’t…”

“Or if you’d rather, I could give you a lift.” Kota teased, waving his hand just so, little flashes of magic falling to the ground.

Riven shot him smirk. “No offense dude, but Musa’s prettier, and has a better grip.”

The group couldn’t help but laugh, poor Kota shaking his head in defeat as Musa flushed. Valkyrie draped an arm around Musa, leaning into whisper in her ear.

“Don’t worry Musa, Flora says the same thing about me.” A teasing wink and a little shove from Musa and she was cackling a bit herself.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oh, this wasn’t good.

The gates to Hagen’s Forge were crushed down, his robot guards smashed and trashed into pieces. Giant spiderwebs covered the remains, foreboding, mocking. Daring others to enter.

“Girls… I think it’s time we went brought out our wings…” Bloom looked to the other fairies in the group.

Stella, Musa, and Flora gave a nod, a bright light flashing over them. As soon as the light faded, the four fairies had their Enchantix wings, fluttering and ready.

Riven, Sky, and Kota had their swords drawn, just in case. Valkyrie, Lucy, and Crystal opened up their coven connection, their marks giving a soft glow. “Lucy, can you get a sense of what we’re about to walk into?” Valkyrie asked, voice whispered.

“I can try.” The green-haired witch walked over to the spiderwebs on the gates, pressing her hand to it. A green aura came over her, wrapping around her as if part of the webs.

As soon as she released her hand, the webs fell around. “Beetleroaches, arid wasps, and huntress spiders are swarming the area… They’re looking for something.”

“Or someone.” Bloom pointed out. “Mandragora’s most likely looking for Hagen too… Which means we need to find him before-”

An explosion came from inside the forge, smoke and ash coming from a few of the windows. The sounds of a fight rang out loud and clear in the silent snow fall, a familiar cackle reaching their ears. “I think we found him.” Crystal gestured.

“Come on, we don’t have time to lose!” Valkyrie charged passed the gates and into the forge’s walls, following the sounds of battle.

She would not let Mandragora get away. Not again.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I do hate that it has to end this way, Hagen, but you’ve left me no choice.” Mandragora was poised, a knife in her hands.

She had an older man down, unconscious, and swarms of her ‘pets’ around her. ‘ _She won’t win_.’ Valkyrie’s dragon growled.

‘ _No, she won’t._ ’

Valkyrie felt for her magic, a wall of flames going in-between the man and Mandragora, forcing the witch back. “Seems you little wretches survived my flies.” Mandragora taunted, turning on her heels to face the group.

Riven charged her, sword drawn. She chuckled, raising her hand as one of her giant spiders tackled him away and into one of the suits of armor. “Next victim?” Musa flew after him, clapping her hands loudly.

Soundwaves burst through the spider, goo exploding. Mandragora cackled. “Looks like you truly are your mother’s daughter... She was a loud mouth too.” The witch taunted. Musa turned angrily, wings fluttering fast.

Flora had beat her to the punch, vines forcing their way inside of the forge to wrap around the witch, thorns cutting past her armor. “You’ll do well to shut up and surrender.” Flora growled. “I don’t take lightly to offenses against my friends.”

“Seems like you’re really rubbing off on your girlfriend.” Kota murmured to Valkyrie, making the younger witch elbow him.

Mandragora tsked, snapping her fingers.

Her pets charged, a few coming to her rescue by eating at the vines. “A true witch never surrenders.”

“She does if she’s dead.” Valkyrie looked to Bloom. “Feel like a fight?”

“Girls, guys, let’s finish this!” Bloom gave her order, the group truly beginning the fight.

Stella and Crystal had finessed a convergence spell together, one in which Crystal’s ruby spell empowered Stella’s blinding lights, forcing the shadow beetles back into the ground.

Riven and Sky were fighting back to back, Kota acting as their shield with his illusion spells making doubles of the duo, confusing the flesh-eaters.

Flora and Musa had their own system. Catch the bugs in Flora’s vines while Musa’s sounds vibrated their bodies into dust.

Lucy was managing to turn some of Mandragora’s pets against each other, creating a miniature war between the factions.

Which left Mandragora in Bloom and Valkyrie’s sights.

“You’re not going to get away this time.” Valkyrie growled, flames in her palms as she reached and grabbed for Mandragora’s wrists, burning them.

Mandragora grabbed her by the hair, using her legs to trip the smaller witch up. “Your father would be so disappointed right now. Seeing you fighting with _fairies_. How dare you betray his legacy?”

Valkyrie felt her inner flames heating up her body, the aura coming off her in waves. “You act like I give a damn about what he thinks of me.” She growled, yanking free as her flames licked the other witch’s skin.

Mandragora growled and raised her hands. “Locust swarms!” A dark purple aura became a group of locusts, all heading straight for Valkyrie.

“Dragon Fury!” Bloom yelled out, flames in the shape of a red dragon swirling and protecting Valkyrie, singing the locusts. She turned to Mandragora, eyebrows knitted together and a scowl on her face, flames still dancing around her gloved hands.

The fairy waved her hands, a bright light coming around her and taking the form of the Dragon, charging at Mandragora.

Valkyrie nearly winced in sympathy as the witch hit the stone walls hard, some of her pets fading out of existence. ‘ _Beat Mandragora down and her pets will wither away. They can’t exist on this plane without her feeding them energy._ ’ Her dragon supplied.

She placed her hands on the ground, a smirk on her face. “You seem chilled, Mandragora… Need a little extra warmth?” Waves of flames came around the young witch, surging straight for blue-haired woman.

Mandragora growled, raising her hands quickly. A shield that resembled a beetle’s armored skin surrounded her, protecting her from the flames. “Pathetic! But what did I expect from the daughter of a traitor!”

Valkyrie felt her blood boil at that, the flames becoming engraved into her veins, rushing to her side. “The only traitor here is you!” She roared, her voice merging with the dragon’s.

Flames began to engulf her, surging forward to find Mandragora with one purpose. To burn her until there was nothing left to burn.

Light. She could somehow feel a flame of light flickering in the inferno around her, Bloom’s dragon having come to life when hers did.

Mandragora wouldn’t stand a chance.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was fuzzy what exactly happened after the power surge Valkyrie and Bloom had given off. The result however, was crystal clear.

The insects were gone, save for a few that were turned against their will (and sent on their way back home with Lucy’s aide). Hagen was alive, but barely. And Mandragora had managed to escape in the chaos.

(But she was burned pretty badly. Her cloak had singed off and parts of her armor had melted to pieces.)

“So… That didn’t go as planned… What’s the new plan?” Kota asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

Valkyrie looked around the room, a small feeling of guilt sinking into her gut. There was so much destruction in Hagen’s workshop… Burn marks and shattered armor, broken swords and bent shields. Tables turned over. (He’d be so pissed when he woke up…)

If he woke up…

Hagen was banged up pretty bad himself. Bruises on his face, armor broken in places, and his arm… It looked broken. “Did you check him for bites or stings?” Musa asked. “We all heard the stories about Mandragora and her poisons…”

“According to his vitals, he’s clean for toxins…” Sky answered, looking at his PDA. “If you don’t count Lunarian Whiskey as toxic…”

“It’s toxic, but its survivable.” Riven gave a sheepish smile. “It gives one hell of a hangover though…”

“Great. So, he’s a drunk.” Stella groaned. “Are we even sure he’s still going to be useful?”

“Stella he may have information on my birth parents… Or at least about Daphne.” Bloom argued.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned this, but my uncle’s a drunk and he’s absolutely useless in everything except drama starting.” Stella countered. “Just saying.”

“You have an uncle?” Lucy asked, confused. “I thought your parents were only children…?” Stella gave a long-suffering sigh.

“My dad has a younger half-brother named Celsius and he’s always been jealous of dad… Needless to say, he doesn’t come over often.” Stella shrugged. “And it doesn’t help that he’s usually intoxicated when he does show up.”

Crystal hummed. “Drunk or not… He does need medical attention…”

“We should take him back to Alfea and at least get him some help… Even if he’s not going to be a help to us.” Flora agreed. “If we leave him here… He could end up dead…”

“Yeah, Mandragora could come back…” Kota sighed. “But how will we get him back to the ship?”

Valkyrie gave a smirk to Kota. “Simple. We carry him magically. Surely, you’re strong enough to help us out, right Ko?”

Kota groaned. “And this is why I hate coming anywhere with you…”

“Don’t worry, we’re going to help.” Lucy teased. “Right, Crystal?”

“Of course.” Crystal looked to Sky. “Call into Timmy and see if they’ve got everything back up and running.”

“Sure thing.” Sky grabbed his PDA. “And then we’ll hopefully be able to head back to Magix…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie watched the star systems as they passed by, the ship managing to chug along just fine. (Mostly… There were a few kinks in the engine, but Nabu and Kota were doing good at keeping them in the air.)

Morgan and Flora were in the infirmary keeping watch on Hagen. They were the best healers in the group, which meant they could keep the pain dulled long enough for them to reach Alfea, and Ofelia.

She could feel a presence beside her, her flames whispering the fairy’s name.

“Can I help you, Red?” Valkyrie teased, turning toward Bloom. She was a little flushed, but her eyes were wide and excited. She was practically thrumming with positive energy.

“Sorry… I just… Thank you, for coming. And for helping me find Hagen.”

“We did the work as a team, Bloom. You know that.”

“I know… But I mean… With the whole… Primordial stuff.” Bloom flushed. “We never would have gotten Hagen’s name if we hadn’t delved in so deep…” Valkyrie shrugged, leaning back in her seat.

“Just don’t get your hopes up… He might not be able to tell us anything new.”

“No… But he may be able to tell me more about them…” Bloom gave a slight smile. “I just want to know…”

Dammit. She could feel something both warm and chilled inside of her. A painful emotion welling up. (Regret? Sympathy? Actual sadness?)

Valkyrie rose up a bit, pulling Bloom into a hug. “I’m sure you’ll find everything you need, Bloom… Just be patient.”

The fairy laughed. “That’s rich advice coming from you.”

“I never said _I_ was patient, I just said _you_ needed to be patient.” Valkyrie smiled, feeling a little lighter. (Bloom seemed lighter too. Her eyes practically glowing.) “Go rest up… We’ll need our strength to interrogate Hagen when he gets up.”

“You mean question.” Bloom teased.

“Interrogate, questioning, it’s all the same thing.” Valkyrie winked. “Depending on who you ask…”


	18. Chapter Eighteen: Unexpected

  1. **Unexpected**



The group had dispersed into smaller groups, all wandering the Alfea campus as they waited for Hagen to awaken in the infirmary. (And for Ofelia to give them the all-clear to meet with him).

Valkyrie was in the library, trying to study for her Beast Taming class to get her mind off of everything. Flora was on the other side of the table, studying for her upcoming transfiguration exam. Chatta was doing her best to help, spouting off random tips to both women about their classes.

“I’m just saying, if what I hear is true, Wizgiz is only going to ask for the most basic transformations when it comes to becoming a cry-cry.” Chatta hummed. “And if you want to tame one, you’ve got to be careful of their feelings. They’re very sensitive.”

“We’ll keep that in mind, Chatta.” Flora chuckled. “I promise.” She nudged Valkyrie’s leg with her foot. “Right, Val?” The witch gave a smile.

“Cry-cry’s aren’t exactly a Cloud Tower priority… But that information may come in handy someday.” Valkyrie admitted, looking to her notes. “Are we the only ones who opted to study?”

“Seems so… Aside from Musa. But with her studies… She’s in the music room.” Flora pointed out. Valkyrie gave a nod.

“Probably for the best. I can only imagine the conniption Concorda would have if Musa were to practice her symphony in here.” Valkyrie couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the image.

She could just picture the pixie fluttering fast around Musa’s head, trying to silence her. How it would probably prompt Tune to restart her ‘lady-etiquette’ classes.

“Don’t even joke about that, Valkyrie. Concorda views the library as her sanctuary.” Chatta fretted. “And I don’t want to get her started on one of her lectures.”

Flora gave her a wink. “It won’t go that far, Chatta. Valkyrie knows when to stop.”

“Most days.” Valkyrie frowned, looking at her notes. “I’m not even taking any of this in…” She groaned, closing her notebook and textbook up. “Do you think we’ll hear something soon? Or-”

Concorda flew into the library, her wings fluttering nearly faster than she could keep up. She landed with a slight thump, her glasses falling off on the table. “I’ve got them!” Chatta made a grab for them, bringing them back to Concorda.

“Thank you dear. My excitement must have gotten the best of me.” Her face flushed as she put her glasses back on. “Now… Where was I?” She hummed. “Oh yes. Hagen is awake.”

Flora grinned. “That’s wonderful. Is he okay? Does he know what’s going on?”

“Faragonda and the other heads have informed him of the current situation and he’s ready to meet you all.”

“Bloom especially, I’m sure.” Valkyrie gave a smile. “He is her godfather.”

“He is.” Concorda gave a nod. “Now, off you go. Library’s closing.”

Valkyrie and Flora chuckled, grabbing their bags and books. “We’re going, we’re going.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a tight squeeze, filing into Alfea’s infirmary, but they managed to do it. (And they’d made sure Bloom was front and center so Hagen could get a good look at her.)

“Hagen, these are the students who saved your life. The Winx, Red Fountain’s top specialists led by Prince Sky, and a coven led by Valkyrie.” Faragonda introduced them, gesturing to each group.

Hagen looked them over, taking them in. “Damn… You’re all children from the Company… Aren’t you?” He looked to Stella and Layla. “I _know_ you two are. You look just like Luna and Niobe.”

Crystal gave a little shrug. “Most of us are. Some of us aren’t. But we have been called the new Company of Light.”

“We really should have a better name though. Something a bit more all-encompassing?” Mirta questioned.

Helia shook his head. “Not the point right now, guys…” He reminded them. Hagen gave a little laugh.

“You are definitely Hannah’s son. We always joked you’d end up looking more like Saladin.” Hagen teased.

Saladin gave a cough. “She is my twin. We do look alike.”

“Still.” Hagen gave a hum. “But you do look more like your mother.” Helia flushed.

“So everyone says…”

“And you are most definitely your mother’s daughter.” Hagen directed toward Valkyrie. “Cut your hair short though… Last time I saw you, you had long braided hair. And less scarred…”

“What can I say? Long hair is hell on the battlefield and I like to fight.” Valkyrie admitted, giving a shrug. “Easy to miss since the last time you saw me, I was like, three.”

Hagen looked to Flora and Tecna and Musa. “It really is the Company of Light here…” His focus turned to Bloom, his eyes widening.

“You… You really do look like Marion…” He paused. “But are you really…? Bloom? Princess Bloom of Domino, the Hannes family heir?”

Bloom gave a slow nod. “I am. And I can prove it. I have the mark. I have the magic… And you said it yourself, I look like Marion…”

Hagen swallowed. “If I could, I’d bow to you, My Dragon.” He gave her a sad smile. “I wish I’d known… I looked everywhere… But Earth. I never thought a magically dead planet would have you…”

Bloom shook her head. “That’s… I’m not worried about that right now. Right now, I need to know about Marion, Oritel, and Daphne. I know you went looking for them and-”

“And if you have any leads, we’d love to know about them.” Sky jumped in, taking Bloom’s hand in his. “Please?”

Hagen closed his eyes, his head bowed. “Bloom… I’ve searched the realms over, tapped into the deepest portions of my magic… But I’ve never found evidence of Marion or Oritel…”

“Daphne?”

“Only in my dreams… I don’t know what happened to her… But she’s… Ghostly.” Hagen stroked his beard with his good hand, eyes slightly teary. “I’m sorry.”

Bloom’s body seemed to slump. Musa frowned. “Bloom… Just because-”

The redhead shook her head, making her way out the door. Stella followed closely behind, giving the others a grim look.

(She could feel the pain wringing through Bloom’s being, her flames in turmoil setting off Valkyrie’s own.)

Hagen swallowed. “I’m sorry. I never wanted to upset her.”

The group shared a look. “Don’t worry about it, Hagen. It’s not your fault.”

“It just means we’re back to square one.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie laid in her bed, Cheshire on her chest. Sleep never came. Couldn’t come. All of her thoughts were on Bloom and Domino. The missing pieces.

 _‘How can we find them if we don’t even have a lead?_ ’ Valkyrie asked her dragon.

‘ _Don’t worry. Bloom and her dragon will heal enough to try again. Soon. We will save Domino._ ’

‘ _I hope you’re right._ ’ She closed her eyes, petting Cheshire’s fur.

(Just because Hagen couldn’t find them, didn’t mean they weren’t there. They were just hidden. Under some spell…)


	19. Chapter Nineteen: Eraklyon Parties

  1. **Eraklyon Parties**



Eraklyon was bustling with activity, the grounds covered in people from all across the realms. Everyone was excited for the induction of the future king.

Dragon statues were stylized with balloons and ribbon. The hedges trimmed just so. Tables lined with food and buffet lines were perfectly set up.

Tables for dining, tables just for sitting and talking. A dance floor was lit up. Live music from Eraklon’s Cultural Institutes, Harmonia’s Grand Band, Melody’s Orchestra, and a choice band Sky loved from the realm of Jubilee.

It was still daylight, the festivities starting early due to how late in the night they would go on. And King Erendor and Queen Samara watched it all from their throne.

(And it wasn’t just royalty or Eraklyonites there. Valkyrie noticed several Company of Light members walking about, including her mother and uncles. And Faragonda, Saladin, and Hagen.)

“Think the others are here already?” Crystal asked, slightly impatient as she swayed from one foot to the other.

The gem witch had braided a few locks of her hair, the bands encrusted with emeralds. Her dress was emerald green, hugging her body and flowing at the waist. Rubies, or what appeared to be rubies, trimmed around her neckline and the end of the dress’s skirt.

Lucy, wearing a tailored suit similar to Valkyrie’s though brighter red in color, gave a shrug. “I’ve seen Faragonda talking to a few of the guards, but that doesn’t mean the girls are here yet.”

Crystal rolled her eyes. “I’m more worried about the boys.”

“I’m sure they’ll be here soon, Crystal.” Valkyrie placed a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “It’s a large party, they’re probably lost.” Lucy chuckled.

“That’d be her luck. Her knight in shining armor, lost because he’s got no sense of direction. She may have to go and _save him_.” Lucy laughed.

Crystal elbowed the taller witch, giving a playful scowl. “That’s not funny, Lucy!”

“Sure is. Tell her, Val.”

Valkyrie held her hands up, giving a wave as she laughed. “No way. I’m not getting involved in this.”

“Probably for the best. Witch-offs are so hard to heal from.” A familiar voice teased. Morgan. Valkyrie rolled her eyes, turning to face her cousin.

The half-elf looked good in her dark pink dress. It had one strap on her left side, the dress actually just flowing off of her in a sort of romantic style. Little gold inscriptions lined the sleeve and hem, giving it an extra shine. (That’s what Bloom called it anyway. To the rest of the group? Elven.)

She had her hair braided back, little pink regla flowers braided into it.

“I can handle myself, thank you.” Valkyrie teased, pulling her cousin into a hug. “Where are the others?”

“Tecna and Timmy are talking to Mr. and Mrs. Mode. Apparently, they’re here and they absolutely adore Timmy with their daughter.” Morgan chuckled, doing the thing where she held her hands and batted her eyes. “Stella is fussing over Brandon and making sure he looks good because his best friend is basically coronated.”

“Layla and Nabu are meeting with their parents and Nabu’s sister and her fiancée. And I think Bloom, Flora, and Musa are walking around with Riven and Kota so they get a good idea of what all’s going on.” Morgan shrugged. “And I’m still looking for Helia… I think he came in with Saladin…”

Valkyrie gestured over to the table her mom and the other heads were at. “In that case, Saladin’s over there. I’m sure he could help you.”

Lucy took Morgan’s hand. “And he will… I’m sure. But uh… Where’s Mirta?”

Morgan gave a wink. “She’s with Cherie. They’re in the hedge maze admiring the statues and flowers. You should go say hello.”

Lucy grinned. “Be back later, ladies.” She gave a wink and grin as she started toward the hedges. Morgan gave a little a teasing curtsy to the others as she headed toward the teachers’ table.

Crystal and Valkyrie laughed, shaking their heads.

“And I thought you were whipped.” Crystal teased. Valkyrie flushed.

“Just because I’m attached to Flora, doesn’t mean I’m not fine with her going off without me…” The witch pushed a loose strand of purple hair back. “And I’m not the one still looking for my boy.”

Crystal sighed, exasperated. “He’s _my_ boy though… Which makes it perfectly okay to worry about him.”

“Right…”

“You worry about me? That’s sweet.” Kota’s teasing voice spoke, his arms wrapping around Crystal’s waist. She giggled playfully pulling away.

“You’re beyond late, Kota. You don’t get to be cute right now.” She laughed.

“Sure I do.” He grabbed her again, spinning her a bit before kissing her. “I’m always cute.” Valkyrie gave a groan.

“Oh, gag me. You two are worse than Stella and Brandon.” Valkyrie made a face. Crystal made a scandalized gasp, a hand on her chest.

“How dare you criticize me and my love?”

Kota snorted, tilting his head toward Crystal. “That’s right. How dare you criticize us?” Valkyrie smirked.

“Simple. I. Dare.” She shrugged. “Sorry, but that’s the rule.”

Crystal and Kota tsked. “See what I deal with? She’s such a bitch.”

“Maybe she needs an attitude adjustment?” Kota teased. Valkyrie rolled her eyes.

“My friends are assholes.” A giggle cut through their teasing, making Valkyrie’s heart speed up. It was so light and airy, a breath of fresh air. Pure.

Flora.

“I’m sure not _all_ of your friends are like that.” Flora teased, taking Valkyrie’s hand in hers, placing her other hand on Valkyrie’s forearm. “I’d like to think I’m fairly decent.”

“You’re far more than decent.” Valkyrie grinned, kissing the fairy’s cheek.

Flora was stunning. A bright pink dress with green overlays, flowers resting on the green portions. Her hair was loose, save for a braided strand with flowers encircling her head, like a halo.

Crystal snorted. “Oh, Flora’s decent alright… When she’s not sneaking out of our dorm.” Kota snickered.

“Busted.”

Flora flushed, trying to hide her face a bit in Valkyrie’s hair. Valkyrie couldn’t hide her own flush. “In my defense, you were supposed to be gone that weekend…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was no surprise that Stella had all of the Winx girls looking amazing and wearing just the right dresses to complement their unique styles.

Bloom had her hair done in a low ponytail, curled just a tad. A fiery red off-the-shoulder dress with flowing skirt and golden ‘flames’ licking at the edges.

Tecna had her hair straightened a bit, a green equal sign barrette holding back a few loose strands. She wore a more modest dress with long mid-sleeves and a layered skirt. Purple around the bodice and sleeves, green around her skirts and hems.

Layla had her hair done in fine braids with beads, intricately styled to capture the movement of waves. She worse a sea-green dress with “bubbles’ lining around the bodice and around the skirt, the dress made for maximum movement ability.

Musa’s hair was in two loops attached to a loose bun in the back. A kimono styled dress with red and black musical notes looked so lovely.

And Stella had outdone herself. Blonde hair curled, her tiara of the Sun and Moon front and center. A sparkling blue dress with constellations was over-layed with an orange overskirt with a sun-based belt.

Mirta had taken a simpler approach, her hair fluffed up and a pastel colored lacy dress that came to her knees.

Parents were there, meaning slight introductions to the ones who hadn’t met yet. (Poor Riven seemed nervous when he really started talking to Ho-Boe about Musa… And Flora’s parents were doting on Flora so much, the poor fairy seemed almost mortified.)

“I know they’re proud… But sometimes I wish they’d be a little less… Proud.” Flora murmured. Valkyrie chuckled a bit, wrapping her arm around Flora’s shoulder.

“The price of being perfect is hard, my dear.” Valkyrie teased. “If you want, we can slip off to the dance floor?”

“Perfect.”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie frowned, gesturing to a familiar sight. The King and Queen of Isis had arrived, a young man at their side. He looked familiar, sharing a similar frown and holding his body in that haughty way Diaspro had done.

“What are they doing here?” Valkyrie found herself asking. Brandon sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

“So… Samara and the Queen of Isis are like… BFFs. Which is partially why they had Sky and Diaspro engaged…” Brandon started. Stella frowned.

“Doesn’t explain why they’re here. Shouldn’t they be banned? Especially after their _little princess_ was cavorting with Valtor?” Stella asked.

“Don’t tell me they’re letting _her_ come here… This is _Sky_ ’s night.” Bloom pouted, arms crossed. Brandon shook his head.

“Nope. Diaspro is beyond banned… Word is, they sent her to Light Rock to… Chill Out…” Brandon explained. “But her brother, Prince Jasper of Isis, is next in line for their father’s throne… And he’s more than welcome here.”

“Just as long as he knows to mind his business.” Musa pointed out. “I’ve got no problems going toe-to-toe with a prince.”

Riven laughed. “You don’t care who you fight with as long as you’re fighting.”

“You’re one to talk.” Nabu snickered, looking up from the group. “Isn’t that Lord Thoren and his mother? She’s… Duchess Natalie… Or something like that…”

Brandon nodded. “Yeah… Queen Samara wanted her family to be here for Sky.” Bloom’s eyes widened.

“So… This Thoren guy is related to Sky?”

“They’re cousins.” Brandon paused, biting his lip. “But they don’t… Exactly… Get along… it’s… A long story and one I’m not sure I should get into… But if Sky wants to tell you about it, he will.” He placed a hand on Bloom’s shoulder. “Trust me though, it’s nothing to worry about.”

“I hope you’re right…” A pause. “How did you know them, Nabu?” Nabu shrugged, laying his head on Layla’s shoulder.

“There were a few times I was allowed to go to a private school for wizards… And Thoren was my student mentor… He was a few grades ahead of me, but our magic styles were similar.”

“Now that’s pretty cool.” Helia admitted. “Hey, maybe if Sky and Thoren make up, we could have our own little wizard squad.”

“Or you could buckle down and learn a little magic yourself?” Morgan teased, nudging him. Helia rolled his eyes, flushing.

“The last time I tried to connect with my magic, I nearly fried us all and had us trapped in a baslisk den. No thank you.”

Riven had to laugh at that. “Sounds like a wild time.”

“It was… until our parents found us.” Valkyrie groaned, shaking her head at the memory. “Mom was sooo pissed.”


	20. Chapter Twenty: King Erendor's Shame

  1. **King Erendor’s Shame**



Finally, it was time.

King Erendor stood at the podium, having everyone take their seats. “I’m so thankful you could all be here for this joyous occasion. My son, Prince Sky, has met all the requirements necessary to be the future King of Eraklyon.”

A thundering of applause swept across the party, but none quiet as cheerful and excited as Bloom. Her eyes were already shining with happy tears, pride radiating from her being.

The courtiers blew their horns, and Sky entered upon the stage, adorned in Eraklyon’s regal attire.

His blonde hair was styled just so, the Prince crown atop his head. It was silver with a golden dragon looped around it, the wings flying at the crown’s edge.

A red puffy top was buttoned just so, a golden coat draped over him. Golden breeches were worn, the Sword of Eraklyon at his side.

Prince Sky of Eraklyon. The myth, the man, and soon to be, the king.

Sky went to take the microphone from his father, to give his speech.

A shriek from one of the Melodian tables had everyone’s heads turning and eyes widening.

Bugs. Thousands of bugs were pouring over the tables and crawling out from the hedges and statues. Tiny bugs began to enlarge into giants. Locusts filling the air. Kekoas spat up acid at the party goers and giant spiders began to trap them in their webs.

Cackling was heard as a puff of smoke hit the stage. “Seems you’ve done well for yourself, Erendor! But you’ve still got a debt to pay!” Mandragora cackled, her hands raised.

Sky glowered, moving to defend his father, his sword drawn. “Back off, Mandragora!”

Valkyrie stood, looking to the others. “Ready for a fight?”

“Always.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Blasts were exchanged. Eraklyon’s guards, the former members of the Company of Light, the Winx, the specialists, and Valkyrie and her Coven were all trying to fight back the hordes of insects and poisonous beings from attacking the partygoers.

Princess Galatea, Mirta, Palladium, and Magnethia were charged with trying to help the partygoers escape back to their ships unharmed while the rest tried to hold off the horde.

Erendor, Griffin, Alyssa, and Sky were directly trying to find Mandragora, the witch blabbering on and on about something Erendor had done.

Valkyrie tried to keep her focus on the battle before her, but something was off. None of the insects were acting as vicious as they had on Hoggar, as if they had an alternative mission.

“Is there anything valuable here?” She asked, creating a ring of fire around her and Brandon to protect against an incoming locust swarm.

“I’m not sure… I’m assigned to Sky so I don’t know what all is around Eraklyon or it’s treasury…” Brandon admitted. “Though I’ve heard the Queen mention a few spellbooks.”

Valkyrie swore, sending a large wave of flames to hold back a horde of giant spiders. She fought her way to Musa, keeping her fire shields up. “I need you to get a message out to your dad and the rest of the Company that’s here.”

“I don’t think this is the time for messaging, Val.” Musa argued, clapping her hands together, the sonic wave sending back a bunch of keek bugs.

“It’s important. I think Eraklyon’s treasury could be endangered. Or their spellbooks.” Valkyrie shielded them from an incoming attack, feeling relieved when one of Morgan’s plants ate it.

Musa swore. “Fine… I’ll try to get a message out.” She fluttered her wings in a certain way, a small chime ringing out over the battlefield.

Ho-Boe rushed off with Electronio, Hagen, and Faragonda toward the castle, weapons and magic at the ready.

(Mandragora would not win this round.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The garden was trashed. The stage destroyed. The food smashed. Tables overturned. And soldiers; be they from Eraklyon, the Company, or the Magix schools, were exhausted and on the ground.

Injured, angry.

Erendor and several former Company members were arguing about why Mandragora could have targeted Eraklyon, the good king feigning ignorance to the whole matter. Sky glowered, stepping up to his father.

Valkyrie swore inwardly, feeling the tension surrounding the king and prince. “Father just shut up and listen to them for once!” He yelled. “They were once your friends, your allies. You can’t afford to lose them, and the Magical Dimension can’t afford for us to ignore their warnings either.”

Queen Niobe gave a hum. “Seems your son will make a better diplomat than you did, Erendor.” She teased, a slight smirk to her face.

“Your son also makes a good point. We didn’t work together when Valtor was terrorizing the realms, and we saw much damage he did. Mandragora is just as dangerous, if not more so. We need to work together.” Queen Luna affirmed, looking to Radius. The Solarian king gave a nod.

“Mandragora has made it known she’s out for blood. We have to stop her before it’s too late.” Erendor glared.

“She was probably just here because she was lured by the Dragons being here.” Erendor looked to Valkyrie and Bloom.

Bloom froze, Valkyrie grabbing her hand and shooting a glare at Erendor. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Your Highness… But if my ears weren’t deceiving me… Didn’t Mandragora mention that _you_ had some sort of debt to pay to _her_?” Valkyrie asked, forcing her temper down.

She had to stay calm. It wouldn’t do to burn him alive. It’d only make things worse.

Erendor was about to argue when Sky crossed his arms. “Valkyrie’s right. Mandragora acted like you owed her. What did you do?”

Hagen gave a look to Electronio. “Do you still got that thing that links to the security feed? If he’s been teamed up with Mandragora, those things would have caught something.”

“I do. But I’d rather not use it unless I have to.” Electronio turned to Erendor. “Will you tell the truth?”

Erendor gave a defeated look, taking his wife’s hand in his. “I was meant to be guarding Domino while you were all attacking Obsidian… You know that.”

Faragonda frowned. “We do. We also know you were nowhere to be found when we got back to Domino…”

“Because I left. Because I made a deal with Belladonna… One I couldn’t pass up.” He admitted. Griffin tensed up, stepping up to be face-to-face with Erendor.

“After all your taunting and trying to undermine me and my strategies, after trying to get me killed over and over again because I _might_ have still been aligned with the Coven, _you’re_ the one who was making deals with them?” Griffin nearly yelled, Salvador having to grab her wrist to keep her from blasting Erendor down.

Alyssa glowered. “Oritel and Marion were our friends! And you betrayed us? Betrayed them?” The normally quiet woman was growling, the flowers around the garden starting to grow and becoming thorny with her anger.

Erendor swallowed. “It was either I left Domino defenseless… Or they were going to kill Sky and Samara… Belladonna had me believing Lysslis was just a moment away from controlling Samara and having her kill Sky and herself. I couldn’t let them die…”

“No. Instead you let a whole realm die.” Hagen roared. “A whole realm full of innocents.”

“He had his family on the line, and it was Belladonna and Lysslis calling the shots. And we all know how they twist things.” Rhodos tried to calm everyone down. “He was only protecting his family.”

“He should have protected Domino. Should have protected Daphne and Bloom and the rest of the people.” Radius argued.

Electronio shook his head, getting in between everyone. “Look… The war forced us all to make difficult decisions. Ones we’ll have to live with for the rest of our lives. There were no perfect answers or clear-cut right and wrong choices. We had to make calculated risks.” He looked to Erendor.

“Did Erendor do something wrong? Yes. But haven’t we all?”

“Not all of us let an entire realm die.” Hagen growled. Griffin and Salvador paled, looking away.

“Some of us did… Even if we weren’t aware at the time…” She admitted, taking her brother’s hand. “Mistakes were made…”

Niobe swore. “And now our children are paying for it.” She gestured to the younger group. Layla snorted.

“We’re not paying for anything, Mom. We’ve been fighting these guys because we wanted to.” Layla reminded her mother.

“That’s right. We chose these fights, and we’re not backing down now.” Stella winked, getting to her unsteady feet. “Though I vote we all rest now… That was a bit of a harsh battle.”

An uneasy chuckle filled the silence, the tension sinking. “Stella’s right… We’re all worn out, and that just makes the anger worse.” Alyssa conceded.

“A good night’s rest will put everything back into perspective.” Faragonda agreed, turning to Erendor. “But there’s still one question we need answered… What did Mandragora take from Eraklyon that would ‘pay off your debt’?” Faragonda asked, using finger quotations.

Erendor paled, a sheepish look coming to his face. “An artifact… Arachne’s necklace…”

Lucy gasped, jumping to her feet. “That… That’s supposed to increase power over insects tenfold. And it can turn the wearer into an aracanhi.”

Bloom swallowed, tugging a bit at her dress. “Lucy… What’s an aracanhi…?”

“To put it simply? A spider person.” Lucy explained. “Like with the ability to spit acid, have poisonous bites, and create the most elaborate web traps… Not to mention the control she’ll have over the rest of the insects…”

Erendor hung his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I know… I really screwed up this time.” Sky walked over to his father, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Dad… We’re going to fix this. Somehow.” He looked over to his friends, giving Bloom and Brandon a special (genuine) smile. “Right guys?”

A chorus of ‘right’ and ‘right on’ and ‘we’ll stop her’ rang out. Even the original Company members were feeling hopeful again, their moods cheering up.


	21. Chapter Twenty-One: No Hope Lost

  1. **No Hope Lost**



Valkyrie closed her eyes, trying to focus on her breathing and her inner power.

A force shoved her down off her bed, making her hit the hardwood of her dorm’s floor, her candles extinguished. Crystal jumped out her desk chair, rushing over with both cats. “Val?!”

Valkyrie swore, hands clenched. “I’m fine!” She yelled out, a growl in her voice. She swore again when she saw the worry in her friend’s eyes and tried to calm herself down. “Its… this spell. I can’t focus on a singular issue, so it keeps misfiring…”

Crystal sighed, sinking down to sit on the floor by Valkyrie. “Let me guess, you’re torn between finding the rulers of Domino and Mandragora?” Her tone was teasing, but the question serious. The smaller witch gave a solemn nod.

“Yeah.” She pulled her legs up to her chest, frowning. “I want to help Bloom so bad, it hurts. I mean, I know I’m not responsible for what happened on Domino, but I _feel_ responsible… You know?” Valkyrie gave a little whine. Cheshire rubbed against her legs, an attempt to calm her down.

“And then there’s Mandragora who is threatening everything and everyone and I can’t just let her go…” Valkyrie groaned. “I hate this so much…”

Crystal wrapped an arm around her, long fingers threading through her friend’s purple strands. “Valkyrie, you need a break. You’ve been going nonstop since senior year started and the stress is taking its toll on you. You’re exhausted.”

The gem witch gave a smile. “Which is why I’m so glad Yule break is just around the corner. You’ll be forced to take a break then. Catch up on your sleep, throw snowballs, try to outdo my brothers in the snow war, and all the home-cooked meals you can stomach.” Crystal laughed. “We’ll get you back on your feet in no time.”

Valkyrie gave a slight smile. “Assuming everything goes to plan, you mean?” Crystal hit Valkyrie on the shoulder, making the smaller witch wince.

“Don’t fucking jinx us, Valkyrie. I will bury you if you jinx my damn vacation.” Her tone was serious, but the light in her emerald eyes told a different story.

Valkyrie smirked. “Yes, Dear.” She stretched out, pulling Cheshire in her lap. “Any word on Lucy’s double date with Mirta and Morgan and Helia?”

Crystal shook her head. “Not that she’s messaged me about. But I wouldn’t worry. Curfew isn’t for another hour and I’m sure they’re on their way back now.”

“They’d better be… I’d hate to end the semester on search and rescue mission.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Crystal groaned. “And it most definitely wouldn’t be the last…”

“Not with our luck anyway.” Valkyrie agreed, giving a nod.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She knew she could get into trouble for this, but if there was a risk worth taking, this was it. Life Books on Marion and Oritel.

(And all it cost was a few of her mother’s peanut butter cookies. Discorda was so easy to manipulate.)

Valkyrie flipped through the stories, not concerned with the childhood or adolescent chapters. No, she was focused solely on the war stories.

_Marion and Oritel fought valiantly against the Ancestral Witches and the wizard, Valtor. Pure life energy flowed from the Queen of Domino while Death’s wrath raged from Valtor’s being._

_Oritel kept his sword in check, able to deflect the strongest of lightning bolts from Tharma and the coldest icicles from Belladonna._

_A power clash was inevitable, the chaotic energy born from a fight with Life and Death resulting in a massive geo-formatting explosion._

_It’s unknown what happened to the Queen and King after this battle._

“Dammit.” Valkyrie whispered/swore. Nothing she didn’t know already. (And she’d given up the last bit of her sweet stash for this…)

The clacking of heels walking up behind her had her freezing. “I’m not sure you’re supposed to be reading those, My Dragon.” Ms. Hildegard’s melodious voice cut through the silence. “Life Books are dangerous to read…”

Valkyrie stood up from her chair, slamming the books shut. “It is if you try to read your own. I’m merely reading those of warriors long past.” She pointed out, keeping her body between Hildegard and the books. She didn’t need her snitching to her mother. “And what did I say about calling me that?”

The older witch flushed, eyes looking down. “My bad… It’s a habit, as I’ve told you before…” Valkyrie frowned.

“Yeah, a creepy habit that I’ve only known Coven members to have.” An accusation. (But a valid one.)

‘ _I don’t recall her being aligned with them… Or anyone with the name Hildegard…_ ’ Her dragon warned.

‘ _People change names all the times._ ’ She reminded him, keeping her focus on the older witch.

She sighed. “Valkyrie… I’m not your enemy. I’m not aligned with the Coven nor have I ever been aligned with them… I simply come from a realm that was once loyal to the royal family of Obsidian… Which now includes you.”

Valkyrie snorted. “Right… I’m sure it does.” She crossed her arms. “Only problem though? Obsidian is a dead planet. You shouldn’t hold such loyalties to a realm not returning.”

“And yet you’re trying to bring back Domino, another dead planet? One that still has many loyal followers?” Ms. Hildegard asked.

“I’m trying to repay a debt I owe. Nothing more, nothing less.” Valkyrie grabbed her bag from the desk. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a class to get to.” She rushed out of the library, not wanting to spend another second alone with the new teacher.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She was getting nothing but dead ends when it came to the royal family, so Valkyrie found it prudent to focus on Mandragora instead.

The witch made her way to Cloud Tower’s terrace, setting up her candles and salt circle. The incantation slowly slipped out of her mouth, her feet taking her into the center…

_Where Mandragora was, Death seemed to follow. It was impossible for it to be any other way considering the witch’s destructive habits._

_Bodies fell everywhere she went, as if simple bugs crushed under her heels._

_An aura followed Mandragora wherever she went, one mediums and psychics tended to possess. An aura that breaches into the spirit world and into Oblivion._

_“She communicates with them still. It’s how she receives her orders.” Valkyrie’s dragon whispered into her ears. “It’s how she picks her targets.”_

_“But Mom never said anything about her having the power to do something like that… Only certain people can communicate with the dead. And its usually only those who trained their whole lives…”_

_“Mandragora had a blood bond with Lysslis… That bond was strong enough to allow Mandragora to commune with them, even in death.”_

_Valkyrie swore. “Great. How do we stop her then? Surely the Ancestral Witches are able to tell her everything they find out about us and what we’re planning?”_

_Her dragon hummed. “They would need a place of Life to communicate. Communing with the dead requires the communicator to draw power from Death and Life… She’d have to be in a place where both are equal…”_

_Valkyrie paused, a realization hitting. “She must be wherever Oritel and Marion are! Granted, Marion most likely only has a remnant of the Dragon Fire, but it’d have to be enough to power a small planet. And it’d have to be a dead planet to meet the requirements for Death…”_

_She could feel her dragon keen at that, a little trill of joy coming from his throat. “All you need to do is find out which realm she is at, and you can stop her and save the Princess of Domino’s parents.”_

Valkyrie nearly jumped out of her skin when the trance broke, her body thrumming with excitement.

“I take it your spell went well?” An airy voice spoke, giggles in between words. Valkyrie grinned, running to Flora and cupping her face, kissing her with passion. The fairy’s hands were immediately around her waist, pulling her up so they’d be on more even footing.

Flora giggled again as they pulled away, a slight flush on her face and lips a little more red from the kiss. “I don’t know what that was for, but I’d like to know so we can do it again.”

Valkyrie grinned, her arms moving to wrap around Flora. “I think I’ve solved our problems… We just need to start investigating dead realms.”

Flora frowned, tilting her head a bit. “Come again?”

Valkyrie shook her head, giving a little laugh. “I’ll explain later, I promise. And then it’ll all make sense and we can stop Mandragora.” She leaned up, kissing Flora again. “But right now? I’d like to keep celebrating with you.”

Flora chuckled, meeting her kiss for kiss. “I’m all for a celebration…”


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two: Happy Eighteenth, Bloom!

  1. **Happy Eighteenth, Bloom!**



“Are we sure this a good idea?” Valkyrie asked, setting the last of the flower arrangements. Bloom’s favorites, lilac-colored tulips from her mother’s shop. (According to Sky and Stella anyway.)

The group was setting up for Bloom’s 18th birthday at some party room in Gardenia. (Stella, Layla, Nabu, and Sky helped get the room booked, with a little help from Bloom’s parents.)

Balloons, streamers, confetti cannons (Chatta’s doing), and flowers decorated the room, a major banner hanging over the wall. The pixies were doing their best to help, moving things to and from the room.

A buffet table was set up; all of Bloom’s favorite dishes were set out, ready to be eaten. (Including a red velvet cake that was starting to tempt Valkyrie’s sweet tooth).

Musa was setting up the stereo systems with Bloom’s favorite songs, Stella and Layla worked on dance lights. (“ _What’s a party without dancing?_ ” Stella had laughed.)

“Don’t worry, Val. Just because _you_ hate surprises doesn’t mean everyone else does.” Morgan teased, finishing up her job at one of the other tables. “Bloom’s going to love this.”

“I hope so. She’s been so down lately, she’s actually starting to make _my_ lights dim.” Stella complained, pushing back long blonde locks out of her face.

Every bit the party girl, Stella truly looked the part in her golden halter top and emerald ruffled skirt, hair falling loosely.

Lucy frowned. “The girl’s entitled to being down, Stella. We’ve checked five dead realms so far and still haven’t found hide nor hair of her birth parents or Mandragora.”

Stella gave a pout. “Still… It’s not like her.” She whined a bit, looking to Brandon for support. The squire raised his hands and shook them.

“Stella… It’s great you want to help Bloom. We all do. But sometimes being sad about things is a good thing…” He moved to wrap his arms around her. “You can’t always be sunshine, Princess… Sometimes you’ve got to have the moon’s sorrows too.”

Crystal shook her head. “That’s beyond cheesy.” She muttered. Kota playfully elbowed her, wrapping his arm around her after.

“Lettem be. It’s cute.”

Layla came down from the ladder. “When _is_ Bloom coming anyway?”

Flora hummed, setting the last of the tables up. “She should be arriving soon with her parents and her uncles and aunts.”

The group froze. “Do they… Know…?” Riven asked. “I mean, about magic and stuff…? Or is this going to be a freak out thing for them?”

Musa shook her head. “Don’t worry, Riven. Her family knows.”

“Kinda hard to keep it a secret, all things considered.” Mirta winked. “She does get fired up… Kinda like a certain witch we know.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes at that. “We are counterparts…” She justified. “And my temper isn’t _that_ bad… Any more…”

Flora giggled, wrapping her arms around Valkyrie. “So you say, Love. So you say.” She looked over to where Tecna and Timmy were fine tuning the room’s silent alarm (their way of knowing when Bloom was on her way inside so they could really surprise her). “Any signs of them yet?”

Timmy pushed his glasses up. “They’re coming this way. Places everyone!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The doorknob twisted, footsteps entered into the room. “Mom, Dad… What’s going on in-”

“Surprise!” The group laughed and jumped out, the confetti falling and the lights flashing on. Bloom was stunned, her blue eyes wide and teary. (Valkyrie could feel how touched she was, how loved she felt.)

“Happy Birthday Bloom!” They cheered, her family joining in and hugging her. Bloom gave a laugh.

“You guys are the best. How did you get this set up so fast?”

“Teamwork. Pixie dust. Faith.” Valkyrie shrugged. “The works.”

One of Bloom’s uncles turned to her, giving her a look. “Pixie dust?”

“Long story.” Bloom winked, going to hug her friends. “You guys are seriously awesome. I… I wish I knew what to say.”

“You can start by getting ready to blow out your candles to make a wish so we can eat.” Stella teased, gesturing to the buffet table. “I’ve really been eyeing those cookies Caramel made… And the cake Mrs. Vanessa made.” Stella flashed a smile at Bloom’s mom.

Bloom chuckled. “Do you ever stay full?”

Brandon groaned, giving a playful but long-suffering sigh. “She doesn’t. It’s why I always keep snacks on me.” He flashed a teasing smile when Stella pushed him away, pouting.

Nabu snickered. “Don’t out your girl like that Brandon, it’s not cool.” He teased.

“Come on, guys. We’ll get ready for the cake.” Bloom laughed, moving to take her seat. The others followed suite, save for Vanessa and Mike who brought the cake over.

Musa stood, giving a nod to Riven who started up the music. She closed her eyes, starting to sing the words to the Melodian birthday song, a tune for fortune and courage and happiness. A beautiful start to a wonder party.

(And once the minor food fight broke out, it was even better. Laughter and joy filling the room up quite nicely.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So… If Tecna’s birthday is so close to Bloom’s… Why not throw them both a party?” One of Bloom’s aunts, a Millie, asked. Tecna flushed.

“Well… You see… Where I’m from we don’t really celebrate birthdays quite like most… Places do.” She gave a slight shrug. “We do presents, sure… And maybe a special dinner… But parties aren’t… Practical.”

Stella laughed, wrapping her arms around Tecna. “Her culture is all about proficiency and practicality. It’s why we have to get her out of her comfort zone from time to time.”

Warm arms wrapped around Valkyrie, a quick peck to her cheek. “Being a wallflower is no fun, Val.” Flora teased/whispered in her ear. Valkyrie felt herself smile.

“Can I help it if I like to people watch?” She turned to face Flora, hands going to the fairy’s waist. “Of course… If I had something else to focus on…”

Flora laughed, taking her to the dance floor near Musa, Riven, Layla, Nabu, and Lucy and Mirta. There was some sort of musical/dance game going on, and it seemed like Musa and Layla were winning.

“That’s not fair!” Lucy laughed, twirling Mirta. “I’m sure you two are cheating.”

Nabu tried his best to dance in sync with Riven, both laughing at the absurdity. “Layla and Musa are masters at this… Why didn’t they take mercy?”

“They don’t have any.” Riven deadpanned.

Valkyrie snickered, trying to let herself be dipped by Flora. “How is this our lives again?”

“Asking the wrong one, Dear.” Flora grinned.

It wasn’t long before the rest of the pairs found themselves entangled in the game, some swapping partners to try to even their odds. But Tune was a harsh judge, her etiquette knowledge overruling the new techniques offered. (Until Chatta and Cherie took over being co-judges. Musa and Layla still ended up winning the ‘Bloom Trophy’.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Things had settled down, the pixies had made their way back to their village, and most of Bloom’s family had already retired to their homes for the evening.

The others stayed to work on cleaning up the party mess, something that seemed easier with a little magic twist.

“Thank you again, everyone… This has been one of the best days I’ve ever had.” Bloom pulled a few of the girls closest to her in a hug; Tecna and Stella. “It really meant a lot to me.”

“Well someone had to get you out of the dumps. And who better than your BFFs?” Stella grinned.

“And your boyfriend.” Sky threw his hand up. “I did help.” He gave a teasing smile. Bloom gave a giggle.

“I’m sure you did…” She bit her lip, as if trying to keep from smiling bigger. “There’s… Another reason I’m glad you’re all here…”

“Why do I get the feeling something major happened and we’re all about to get into trouble because of it?” Lucy asked, crossing her arms. “You’ve got that smile…”

Layla hummed. “I’m sure it won’t be that bad. We’ve handled worse.”

“True.” Helia shrugged. “Depending on what this will be, anyway.” Bloom feigned a pout.

“Rude. Why is it every time I want to make an announcement of some sort, you all think something bad has happened?”

“Just following a pattern, Red. Nothing to get your panties in a twist about.” Valkyrie winked. Tecna shrugged.

“Actually, only about 10% of Bloom’s announcements end in trouble… But I do see where you’re all coming from.” Tecna corrected.

Timmy flushed. “Actually it’s about 11% percent… You forgot to add in the whole… Charging into ShadowHaunt thing…”

“Good point.” Tecna kissed his cheek. “You’re amazing at keeping track.” Nabu froze for a moment.

“So… The whole stint with Valtor… Wasn’t the first time you guys went straight into danger?”

“Not even close.” Helia admitted. “There were even a few close calls back when we were kids… Right, Valkyrie? Kota?” Helia shot at them.

Kota and Valkyrie both pouted, crossing their arms. “We didn’t get into _that_ much trouble.”

“Just enough…”

Layla shook her head, waving her hands a bit. “Okay guys, as fun as this bit has been, Bloom’s still got something she wants to tell us.”

Bloom smiled. “Thanks, Layla.” She turned to the rest of the group, her smile getting bigger. “Daphne came to me last night… She told me about what happened on Domino, or at least… She told me about our last moments together…” A wave of sadness passed around the fairy, but she seemed to shake it off.

“Tell us if you want to Bloom.” Musa smiled, trying to encourage Bloom to share if she wanted (or needed) to.

Bloom bit her lip. “She said that while we were in the Nether, she could hear the battle and some spell went out and it brought us back. So to protect me from the battle going on, Daphne rushed to send to me someplace the Coven wouldn’t look for me… Earth.”

“She went to join the battle after, but a former friend of hers attacked her and there was a fight. She said the realm used its power to defeat her attacker and to give Daphne her powers as a nymph, but because of what happened with the Balance… She became trapped just like Marion and Oritel did…”

“Which was sad in and of itself… but because of her new powers, she was able to communicate between worlds and planes of existence.” Bloom explained.

Brandon shrugged. “Explains how she can still talk to you.”

“And I’m glad she does. She told me about this thing called the _Book of Fate_. According to her, it should be able to help us out.”

“ _The Book of Fate_? Little on the nose isn’t it?” Musa crossed her arms, head tilted. “And what does it do? Tell your fate? Isn’t that something dangerous to know…?”

Bloom shook her head, hands waving. “No, no, no. It’s nothing like that… Well… Kind of.” She frowned, trying to find the worse. “It tells the stories of Domino’s royals… And while it can’t show future events, it can show the past… Including what happened to my parents.”

Morgan laughed. “Sounds like a road trip to Domino is in order.”

“I’m sure we can get a day pass with my Uncle Saladin for something like that. You’ll need all the backup you can have there.” Helia grinned.

Stella nudged Bloom. “Assuming you want this to be a group adventure…?”

“Because if not, we’ll stay put.” Sky vowed. “It _is_ your home turf.” Bloom smiled, hugging Sky.

“I want us all to go to Domino. There’s a power in numbers.” Bloom grinned. Valkyrie sighed, leaning back against the wall.

“You guys have fun on Domino. And try not get killed.”

“You won’t be going?” Nabu frowned. “You always go… Well… Almost always.” He looked to the others. “Doesn’t she?”

“I do. Usually. But Domino is the opposite realm to Obsidian, meaning it’s my opposite realm. And if I go there…” She paused. “If I go to Domino, the light magic that still surges through the realm will kill me. Or at least, will drain my power and energy to the point where I feel like I’m dying.”

“We can just use another potion like we did last time.” Morgan pointed out. “We know there’s at least one that counters the effects.”

“For only an hour!” Valkyrie reminded her. “And we have no idea how long it’ll take to find this book. I…” She sighed. “I don’t want to risk it.” She looked to Bloom. “I’ll hang back and start looking at more realms your parents could be on… Is that okay with you?”

Bloom walked over, pulling Valkyrie into a hug. The witch half-froze, but patted Bloom’s back. “Good luck, Val.”

“You too, Red. You too.”


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three: Mandragora Strikes

  1. **Mandragora Strikes**



Valkyrie frowned, tapping her pen against her desk. Professor Zarathustra was explaining some potion, one that could enhance a witch’s focus, but Valkyrie couldn’t find it in herself to pay attention. (Ah the irony…)

Instead, she found herself crossing off a few more planet names. Fallat, Talae, Senco., and Heole. No traces of life magic to be found in their essence. They were dead, completely and fully. (Aside from the monsters and shadow creatures that lurked about.)

She wanted to swear and scream. She wanted to have good news for Bloom and the others when they returned from Domino. She wanted something to tell them other than ‘Sorry, no luck yet.’

There were a few more realms left on the list… Maybe one of them could-

“Ms. Sylvane, care to recite the last few ingredients needed in our focusing potion?” Zarathustra asked, hands on her hips and lips pursed.

 _Fuck._ She was sooooo busted.

“Professor Zarathustra, I was just writing those down. There’s crushed dragon claws, a little ambrosia, and a bit of honey.” A lie, but maybe it was at least partially true? She threw in a little smile, hoping to charm her aunt, at least a tad.

“See me after class, Ms. Sylvane.” She turned on her heels, pausing before making her way back to the blackboard. “And the ingredients, for your notes, are crushed pantera’s claws, a bit of web from a greci spider, and a portuie berry.”

A slight snicker from beside Valkyrie’s desk had her turning around. Hecate was giving a wicked smile. “Oh, ease up, Professor Zarathustra… We all know Vally’s lost her focus since she can’t pin down Mandragora.”

“Shut up, Hecate. I’d like to see you face off against an ancient as hell witch and come out unscathed.” Crystal growled out from behind Valkyrie’s desk, a small geode forming and hitting Hecate across the face.

The blonde witch jumped up, a yowl escaping her lips. “Are you for real right now?!” She hissed, glowering at Crystal and Valkyrie. “And I don’t have to face off against anyone! Unlike you and those little fairies you hang around, I don’t have anything to prove.”

“Come off it, Hecate. We all know you’re jealous.” Samantha teased. “Considering Val left you for one of those fairies.”

“And helped save our skins.” Shilly reminded. Hecate glowered.

“Doesn’t mean shit. The witch is just trying to fix what her demon father broke.” The blonde gave a smug smile. “Isn’t that right, Valkyrie?”

Valkyrie kept her breathing even, trying to keep from igniting everything on fire. “I’m trying to set the Balance back on track. You remember, the Balance? The one thing that keeps us all from living in an apocalyptic scenario?”

A loud whistle cut through the classroom, combined with a loud heel stomp that literally shook the room. “Last time I checked, this was a potions classroom, not a courtroom for petty squabbles. Everyone sit down, shut up, and start writing.” She looked to Hecate, Crystal, and Valkyrie. “All three of you, stay after class. We’re going to be having an interesting chat with the Headmistress.”

All three witches groaned.

“Fantastic.”

“Well we’re screwed.”

“Nice having a social life while it lasted…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“They seriously gave you guys detention for a week? You’ve got cleaning duty in the kitchen? And four extra potion assignments? What did you two even do?” Lucy asked. She was amused at the idea; Valkyrie could tell from her smug smile and the way she was leaning back into Mirta’s lap.

“It’s all Hecate’s fault. She shouldn’t have opened her damn mouth.” Crystal glowered from her desk; fingers splayed. She was taking off the polish she’d just put on, not wanting to be damaged during their clean up week.

“Isn’t Hecate the witch you dated briefly, Val?” Mirta asked, frowning a bit. “At least… Until she teamed up against Musa?”

Valkyrie gave a sigh, laying completely in the floor, Cheshire flumping down from her lap to her stomach. “Yep.”

Lucy tsked. “We tried to warn you that she was a vengeful bitch.”

“You mean like we warned you against the Trix coven?” Valkyrie teased. Lucy groaned.

“Mirta… Do you see how they treat me?”

Mirta giggled, running her hand through Lucy’s long green hair. “She’s gotta point, Luce…” The fairy conceded.

“Unbelievable. Even my girlfriend turns against me.”

“We do have that power.” Crystal teased, flashing her signature smile and wink. Patches gave a little mew, jumping into Crystal’s lap to be petted. “Anyway, at least it’s only a week’s worth of punishment… Surely it won’t be that bad…”

“Four extra potions’ assignments, Crystal… how is that not bad?” Valkyrie complained, a whine in her voice.

“I’m good at potions, so I don’t see myself having a problem.” Crystal snickered. “Good luck Val.”

Valkyrie groaned, dramatically sprawling out. “My perfect 4.0… Gone in a matter of assignments.” Valkyrie whined. “Why does life hate me so?”

Three girls rolled their eyes at the witch’s antics, trying to suppress a few snickers. “Perfect 4.0 huh? You sure it’s always been that good?” Mirta teased.

“Oh it is… Valkyrie takes after Ms. G in that department. Always has to be on top of _everything_.” Crystal wrinkled her nose. “Type A Wiatch.”

Lucy gave a nod. “It’s sort of disgusting how she can just throw herself into schoolwork while fighting off the Magical Dimension’s worst criminals at the same time. It’s kinda unfair.”

“It’s called discipline.” Valkyrie snorted.

“And yet you have problems with potions?”

“Do you have any idea how many different formulas there are? The memorization process that’s required to keep yourself from blowing everything into Kingdom Come?”

Mirta shook her head, giggling. “Poor Valkyrie. Seems Morgan got all the luck with potions.”

“The bitch is half-elf. It’s not fair.” Valkyrie pouted.

“What was it we all learned the hard way? That life’s not fair?” Lucy teased. Valkyrie flipped her off.

“Sorry, Val. She’s mine for that.” Mirta laughed. Crystal shook her head.

“Good job, ladies… You’ve got Mirta doing it now. Hope you’re happy.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Screams echoed the halls of Cloud Tower, causing Valkyrie and her coven (and Mirta) to give each other looks. They turned their movie off, rushing into the halls.

“What’s going on?” Crystal asked, trying to calm down a few students who were rushing down the hall. A couple of freshmen if the fear on their faces was anything to go by.

One of them, a petite blue haired witch, shook, gesturing behind them. “There’s keek bugs! And-”

More screams and blasts filled the halls of Cloud Tower, a surge of insects crawling along the walls and doors. Valkyrie swore.

“Mandragora! How the hell did she get passed the barrier?”

“We can ask her after we take her down.” Crystal opened her palms, a wave of blue and green coming off of them. Several bugs caught in the mist became stone creatures, shattering as they hit the ground.

Mirta closed her eyes, a light consuming her and revealing her wings and fairy form. “Should we split up?”

Valkyrie gave a nod. “Crystal, head downstairs and rally every and any student and staff member you can. Mirta, you and Lucy keep the west and east wings safe. I’m headed up.” She pressed her fingers to her coven mark, making it shimmer as she looked to Crystal and Lucy. “Keep in touch.”

Two meows made them look to the ground, Cheshire and Patches looking up at them. Crystal gave a smile, waving her hand and reciting the spell Tanae had taught them.

Valkyrie followed suite, watching as Patches became a lioness and Cheshire became a panther. “Come on, we don’t have time to waste!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predictable. Mandragora was fighting with her mother throughout the teachers’ wing, anger and bitterness (and regret?) filling the open space of the halls.

“Come on, Griffin! Fight like you mean it! Remember? How you used to fight?” Mandragora taunted.

Griffin snarled, pushing her purple locks away (her bun having come undone), a wave of energy absorbed from Cloud Tower’s negativity surging toward Mandragora. “I’m _not_ that witch anymore. Get over it!”

Valkyrie noticed Mandragora tapping some talisman on her neck, the witch transforming into something half-spider. “And that’s your biggest mistake.” Mandragora hissed, lunging toward Griffin.

A wall of fire separated them, forcing Mandragora back. Valkyrie glowered. “Unless you want to be flambéed, back away from my mother!” Mandragora growled, raising her hands.

“Oh goodie… The traitor and the disappointment. How fitting.” A swarm of locusts came for them both, Griffin creating a shield to protect herself while Valkyrie just focused on frying them as they got close.

A mist came off the locusts, making it hard to see.

Valkyrie wiped at her eyes, finding herself face to face with Mandragora. She growled, heatwaves coming off of her and forcing the other witch back.

Anger. There was so much anger there.

Valkyrie summoned Cloud Tower’s negative energy toward her, letting it fuel her flames. “You’re going to regret coming here!”

“Not as much as you’re going to regret facing me alone.” She gave that grin, hands glowing green as Cloud Tower seemed to come to life.

This was going to be one hell of a fight.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fire fought against the energy blasts, the anger never wavering. Instead it felt more intense, burned hotter and hotter.

“Just give up, Mandragora, and I might let you live!” Valkyrie growled out, her inner dragon roaring as embers flickered where she walked. The other witch snarled.

“I don’t _give up_ , nor do I back down.” Another flare of magic, a form of misdirect as Valkyrie felt something chilling rising up her spine.

Valkyrie seethed, feeling out her flames, allowing the engulf her. “You’re going to be nothing but ash!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Both witches were panting hard, the fight wearing them down. But Valkyrie was determined, she was going to end this. (Not even the constant ringing and burning of her coven mark was going to break her concentration. Lucy and Crystal would forgive her… Eventually.)

She had her flames in her palms, ready to search inside of Mandragora to burn her from the outside in. Mandragora wasn’t going to give in either, the witch brandishing a small blade she’d taken from one of the suits of armor.

“Wait! You’re not seeing things clearly!” Mirta’s voice rang out.

Something soft and light began to fall from the sky, tickling and itching at Valkyrie and Ma- Headmistress Griffin.

(What the fuck?!)

Griffin groaned, dropping the dagger, wiping at her eyes before gasping, a hand coming to her mouth. “She spelled us…”

Realization hit…

Valkyrie swore, her flames flickering out. “She was going to have us kill each other…” (Anger. Her anger rose at the thought. How dare she?)

“She was going to have us kill each other.” Valkyrie repeated, the anger dropping as she rushed to hug her mother, helping the older witch up.

Griffin held tight to her daughter, her nails nearly breaking the skin of her shoulders. “I never could have lived with myself….”

“You think I could have?” Valkyrie felt herself shake. (Killing her father had been one thing… But her mother?)

Mirta sighed, flying down. Both witches broke apart, watching in awe of the fairy. “I’m just glad I got to the both of you before…” She flushed. “Anyway, I made it.”

Valkyrie wanted to thank the fairy, pausing before she could get a word out. “You… Earned your Enchantix? That’s amazing.”

Mirta grinned, giving a curtsy.

She looked amazing. Her red hair had elongated to just below her shoulders, a little ponytail keeping a few blue loose strands from falling in her face. An orange halter top flowed down her torso, little criss-crosses connecting to her orange and blue ruffled skirt. Big dragonfly-esque wings sprouted at her back, blue tinted with little orange swirls on the inside. Light blue gloves. Silver sandals that came to her ankles. And a choker with a little marble looking charm.

Griffin gave a pleased hum. “You wear it well, Mirta.” The former witch flushed, giving a grin. “And, I’ll deny ever saying this, but thank the dragons for fairy dust.”

Valkyrie grinned, moving to hug Mirta. “You’re a lifesaver.” She paused. “Literally… How did you get your Enchantix?”

Mirta glared, the memory boiling up as she clenched her fists. “Mandragora joined the fray downstairs and Lucy tried to get in touch with you through your link… But you weren’t answering and she tried to stop her by herself.”

“Mandragora nearly killed her with this spell that mimics a gathacian spider’s bite and… I took her place.” Mirta gestured to her wings and fairy form. “Now I have my Enchantix.”

Griffin glowered. “Is everyone okay?”

“Everyone’s fine, Griffin. We’re not completely incompetent without you.” Zarathustra teased as she walked up. “Ediltrude and Hildegard are helping clean up the mess with groups of students,” She looked to Valkyrie, “including Crystal and Lucy… And…” the older witch sighed, worry on her features. “I got word from Griselda that our school wasn’t the only one attacked by Mandragora… Alfea and Red Fountain both had encounters today.”

Valkyrie glowered. “What’s she after anyway? The Codexes? Spell books…? Revenge?”

“I’ll have to check with Discorda to see if she took anything… But I wouldn’t be surprised…” Griffin swallowed. “And I’ll check in with Faragonda and Saladin. Hopefully… Hopefully she didn’t take anything that was actually worth something.”

Valkyrie gave her mother a look. “When have we ever been that lucky?”


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four: Motion

  1. **Motion**



_“Do it. You know you want to. It’d be so easy.” A voice crooned in her ear. A flaming dagger was in her possession, aimed at the prisoner brought in._

_Their head was covered, not that their identity mattered. If her Grandmothers wanted this person dead…_

_The cover fell, and Valkyrie couldn’t breathe. Her mother, bound and magicless. Powerless. Belladonna gave her a look. “Don’t hesitate, Child. Do it.”_

_“Valkyrie… You know this is wrong. You know you don’t want to this.”_

_The witch struggled to breathe, her flames dying out as the oxygen refused to process itself as fuel. She shook, falling to her knees._

_“Dammit girl! Prove yourself! Show your worth!”_

_“Fight them, Valkyrie. Fight them.”_

_“Kill her!”_

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She felt awful. Her head ached, her body ached, and she hadn’t slept.

How could she sleep? Every time she tried to close her eyes, she was brought back into that awful place, nearly forced to kill her mother.

Not even Cheshire and his melodic purrs could help her through it, nor could her covenmates’ tales of woe and worry about their upcoming exam bring out her better side.

She did her best to follow along in class, to work on her projects, to try and do more than just _exist_ , but life was seldom as anyone wanted it to be.

“Magix to Valkyrie. Magix to Valkyrie. Hello?” Lucy waved her hand in front of Valkyrie’s eyes, startling the witch into nearly dropping her glass of water. “You okay?”

Valkyrie gave her a look. “That depends, how okay do you think you’d be with nearly killing _your_ father?” (She’d have said mother, but Lucy’s had been out of the picture for so long… Her dad was the better choice.)

Lucy gave a slight nod. “Noted. Piss-poor.”

Crystal nudged Valkyrie’s leg with her foot. “Don’t worry about it, okay? Mirta’s fairy dust broke the spell and no one from any of the schools got majorly hurt.”

The smaller witch glowered. “No. But Mandragora did get away with the Scrolls of Lanum, the Sword of Unda, and the Book of Yurk.”

“Which will get back as soon as we kick her ass back into Omega.” Lucy reminded her.

“Or send her into Oblivion… Which ever comes first.” Crystal shrugged, looking at her nails. “I’m wondering if I should invest in nail gems? They could be useful in combat and for quick divination… But I’m not sure…”

Lucy hummed. “Depends on the gems you’re thinking of. Your rubic powers could use a boost… And so could your emerald abilities.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes. “Try actual crystals. It’d go with your name in such an ironic twist.” She allowed herself the distraction, to get sucked into normal teenager talk.

Exam talk came up, as well as their senior presentations.

Mundane. Shit that wouldn’t matter if they didn’t stop Mandragora ASAP. She was about to say something to that effect when her phone went off, a text from Flora.

“How do you girls feel like a trip to Red Fountain later?” Valkyrie asked. Crystal grinned.

“I’m always game for a trip to Red Fountain… Though I feel like we won’t be just _socializing_.” The gem witch teased.

Lucy threw her hands up. “Let me guess, we’re talking battle strategy? Or what?”

Valkyrie smiled. “Part battle strategy, part hanging out. They finished their trip to Domino and Bloom’s got _The Book of Fate_. Says it gave some interesting information that we could all stand to listen to.”

Lucy and Crystal shared a look. “Guess we weren’t going to be doing anything anyway…” Crystal commended.

Lucy frowned. “What about your punishments from Zarathustra? Aren’t those still… In effect?”

Valkyrie swore. “You’re right… Maybe we could holo-call? Strategize that way?” She frowned. “But I’d still rather do it in person… Just in case.”

Crystal hummed. “Considering it’d be to gain information on how to stop Mandragora and save Domino… It could be something we’d be allowed to get away with?”

“Or… we slip out…?” Valkyrie grinned. “We haven’t done that in a bit…”

“Absolutely not!” Crystal half-growled. “The last time we snuck out, we nearly got killed! Remember? It was fucking full moon and the werewolves were out!”

“I told you to bring your silver.” Valkyrie half pouted. “It’s not my fault you didn’t listen.”

Lucy shook her head. “I say we just ask Ms. G for permission before we head out into the fray. I’m sure after the excitement from the past few days, she’d be glad to know someone’s out looking to stop Mandragora.”

“Besides the police? And every royal guard in the Magical Dimension?” Crystal deadpanned.

“Crystal, you know they’re all useless. It’s why we meddle.” Valkyrie pushed her glasses up. “Now, let’s go see what the fairies and their heroes found.”


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five: Pixie Village and Ulmoira

  1. **Pixie Village and Ulmoira**



Valkyrie, Lucy, and Crystal walked into the library, taking their usual table. Discorda frowned, flying over and landing in front of them.

“You know, I never like seeing the three of you at the same time… It never bodes well.” The pixie crossed her arms. “So, tell me, what’s your poison today?”

Lucy stretched a bit in her chair, giving a little smile to the pixie. “Test answers for next weeks exams? That’d be nice.” She teased. Crystal elbowed the lithe witch.

“We’re trying to save the Magical Dimension, not our test scores.” The gem witch reminded. She flashed her signature smile to Discorda. “Honestly, we need everything you’ve got on some realm called Ulmoira. Please?”

Discorda frowned. “Why in Hell would you want to learn about _that_ realm?”

“Bloom. Her newfound _Book of Fate_ stated that a remnant of the Dragon Fire pulsed through the realm. And we all know there’s only one way that’s possible.” Valkyrie told her. “And the only information we have on the place is that there’s a barrier spell keeping intruders out.”

“So the fairies are in Pixie Village trying to find a way to break the spell using Lockette’s powers and we’re doing recon to see what we’ll be getting ourselves into.” Valkyrie finished.

“But we can’t do that without books to research from.” Crystal twirled a loose strand of brunette hair.

“Which begs the question, what do you have on Ulmoira?” Lucy grinned.

Discorda frowned, tapping her little foot. “That depends, ladies, what do you have to offer me?” Damn pixie, never did anything without a price.

Valkyrie brought up her backpack, digging in passed all of the textbooks and notebooks. “How do you feel about Kian Bars and Mueal cookies?” Valkyrie asked, bringing a small container of cookies up along with the candy bar.

The pixie gave a smile, a twisted little curve of the lips. “You do drive a hard bargain, Valkyrie. I’ll be back with the books you requested.”

She flew straight up, a dark aura shifting around her as books from different sections of the library filed out to her, stacking themselves up neatly.

There were easily a dozen books, all having a mention of Ulmoira. “Great… As if we didn’t have enough to study.” Lucy grumbled.

“Lucy… The fate of the entire realms is up for grabs. We can suffer a little reading.” Valkyrie snipped.

Crystal frowned, looking her nails over. “It wouldn’t be our problem if our police forces weren’t such jokes…”

“In their defense, there hasn’t been threats of this level since the Great War.” A voice spoke up from behind them.

All three witches nearly jumped, having been so engrossed in their own conversation they’d failed to notice their new teacher coming up to them. “It’s why they’re ill-prepared to handle such threats. And why new… Heroes… Have had to take up the fight.” Professor Hildegard pointed out, a few books in her arms.

One of them began to glow, falling in line with Discorda’s pull. “I guess she needs the book more than I do.” She mused.

Valkyrie frowned, about to say something when Lucy piped up first. “We’re doing a little recon, Ms. Hildegard. Can’t go in blind.”

“Well… We could.” Crystal chuckled. “But the last time we did that, it ended badly for us.” She looked to Valkyrie. “And I mean, Omega level badly.”

The professor tilted her head. “And just… What are you doing recognizance on?”

Valkyrie crossed her arms. “Why do you want to know? Going to report back to Mandragora? Or perhaps to the Ancestral Witches themselves?”

“Valkyrie!” Lucy and Crystal chastised.

Professor Hildegard raised her hand, shaking her head. “She has every reason to be worried about my allegiances.” She took a deep breath. “However, I can assure you, I’m loyal only to Cloud Tower and our students.” Hildegard set her books down, rolling up the sleeve to her show her arms.

A coven mark was evident, little scrawls that Valkyrie had seen time and time again. Her mother’s mark and the mark of ALL the Cloud Tower teachers under her mother. A pact that they were to follow with the needs of Cloud Tower and the students. No one else could interfere, no one else could press their will against them.

Valkyrie paled. “I’m sorry… I… I never…” Professor Hildegard gave a smile.

“I understand, Valkyrie. Things are complicated around here.” She noticed Discorda beginning her descent, the books following her. “I’ll get out of your hair and let you do your recon.” Hildegard gave a wink. “Be safe, ladies.”

The Lucy and Crystal waved her off, Valkyrie sheepishly waving herself. “I've never been _that_ wrong before…”

Lucy placed a hand on Valkyrie’s shoulder. “Mistakes happen. And you are paranoid.”

“Is it paranoia if they’re out to get you, though?” Crystal questioned.

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, watching as Discorda landed. “That everything?”

“Everything Cloud Tower has.” Discorda extended her hand. “My compensation?”

Valkyrie handed her the cookies and her candy bar. “Thank you, Discorda.”

“Pleasure.” Discorda smirked, flying off with her goodies and leaving the books behind. Valkyrie started to divide them up.

“Get to diving ladies, we’re going to be here a while…”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ulmoira was a former dark realm, one of the first to die out under the Ancestral Witches’ control. (And the rumored home realm of the Ancestral Witches, themselves.)

It was once lovely in its darkness; spiraling mountains that were home to storm harpies, murky ocean waves that begged for attention, poisonous plants hidden within forests, and protected castle walls. Sprawling, untamed wildlands.

And now?

The realm was dead. Snow covered the entire realm, storms raged over the lands, and shadow creatures lurked in every corner; they were the only things that could survive such wastelands.

(And it was a good focal point for Mandragora to be channeling the Ancestral Witches. If it was their home realm, it was flowing with their essence. Couple that with the essence of the Dragon Fire remnant that was pulsing around, and a little window into Oblivion could be opened.)

“Think we’ve got enough?”

“I do. Call the fairies, I’ve got a plan.” Valkyrie gave a smile. Lucy groaned.

“Things never go well when you have that look.”

“Let’s just hope your plans don’t end with you trapped by the Water Stars again.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes. “Okay, okay. I get it, you’re both _oh so_ clever.” She grabbed her backpack. “Come on, we’ve got shit to do and a royal family to reunite.”


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six: Plotting the Demise of Mandragora

  1. **Plotting the Demise of Mandragora**



The group had managed to congregate in an empty Red Fountain classroom; charts, notes, and various plans of attack outlined on the boards.

“Are you sure this plan is going to work, Stella?” Musa asked, frowning at the blackboard and pointing to one of ‘tasks. “Something doesn’t feel right about…”

Digit looked the plans over. “It’s a little cut and dry… Aren’t these fights usually, I dunno, dramatic?” Tune huffed.

“Contrary to what Chatta may have us all believing, not everything has to be dramatic.” The pink haired pixie gestured.

“I think Musa meant that it seemed almost too easy.” Riven intervened. Sky hummed.

“It could work… Assuming Oritel and Marion’ll be kept out in the open.” He pointed to a different flaw. “Otherwise, we may have a little trouble…”

Stella frowned. “Forgive me for wanting this whole ordeal to be over with.” She huffed, crossing her arms. “Isn’t it bad enough we’ve had to fight every year of our high school careers just to survive? Didn’t we deserve a simpler senior year?”

Brandon wrapped his arms around her. “It was a decent plan, Stells… Mandragora’s just not a decent lady.”

Crystal placed a hand on Stella’s shoulder. “I feel you on the simpler year thing, Princess… After this, I feel like we should all take a year-long vacation to Callisto or Nadem.”

“And enroll in therapy for the next few years.” Lucy shook her head. “None of this can be good for us.”

Valkyrie put her fingers together, giving a whistle. All eyes turned to her. “I get that we’re all starting to feel… Rundown. We’ve been doing this for four years now. But if we let exhaustion over take us now, they’ll win.”

“We only need to stick it out just a little longer guys.” Bloom raised her hands. “And just think, if we beat Mandragora now, we can all focus on prom and graduation. We’ll never have to worry about these… Pests from the past anymore.”

Morgan hit Bloom’s shoulder, giving a frown. “Don’t jinx us like that, Bloom!”

“Sorry. Sorry.” Bloom waved her hands, trying to keep the peace. Helia sighed.

“I’m not even sure I want to think of graduation right now…” He leaned against one of the desks. Stella and Riven moved closer to Helia, placing their hands on his shoulders in solidarity.

“Parents?” Stella asked.

“Parents.” Helia admitted. Riven shook his head.

“They can be the worst, even when they should be at their best.”

“Amen.”

Chatta cleared her throat. “Excuse me… But shouldn’t we be focused on how to stop Mandragora?”

“We? Last I checked, pixies weren’t coming on this mission.” Mirta pointed out. Chatta flushed, kicking at the air as she flew over to Flora.

“Well… We’re your bonded pixies… So a little bit of our magic does go to help you…” Chatta mumbled.

“And that’s a good enough effort.” Flora cooed, kissing Chatta’s cheek. “Does anyone have any ideas aside from Stella’s? Or maybe ways to improve it?”

Tecna looked the idea over, starting to erase bits of the blackboard. “The realm is potentially the home realm of the Ancestral Witches, right? Which means it’ll be crawling with illusionary traps and shadow monsters…”

She began to write a little faster. “And Mandragora already commands a fairly strong army of insects and mercenaries she turned into bug soldiers while in Omega…”

“We’ll need teams to defeat her and her monsters while scouring in search of Oritel and Marion. Because it was a dark spell that captured them, I feel it should a group of fairies who search for them to bring them back.” Tecna concluded.

Nabu looked gave a nod. “Fairies after Oritel and Marion… And they should be led by Bloom or Valkyrie considering we’ll need to use the Dragon Fire to find them… Right?”

“Right. And my vote’s on Bloom doing the leading.” Layla looked to Bloom, taking the redhead’s hands in hers. “I know you want to help in the direct fight with Mandragora, but if we’re going to be infiltrating a dark realm, you’ll need to conserve your power. Valkyrie’ll be more than strong enough.”

Valkyrie felt Flora’s hand wrap around her, giving a squeeze. “She will be. Dark realms were born from the Dark Dragon’s Fire. She’ll get a power boost.”

“Still doesn’t account for the monsters and who’ll fight Mandragora. Or who’s gonna trail after the fairies helping to save Marion and Oritel.” Kota pointed out. A few looks had him shrugging. “What? Layla and Flora had a good point. Ulmoira is a dark realm, which means it’ll drain the hell out of ALL light magic. The fairies will need an escort so they don’t have to fight until necessary.”

Timmy pulled up his PDA, typing in a few numbers. “It’ll be a tight battle to plan for. Mandragora does have a lot of fire power, and if there’s a hole opened up into Oblivion, the Ancestral Witches could potentially feed a little of their magic into the realm…”

“As it stands, we have a 40% success rate… And that’s with at least three deaths of our own.” Timmy bit his lip. “Ideas?”

Valkyrie moved away from Flora, studying the board.

“I may have an idea, but it’s a little on the crazy side.”

“When aren’t your ideas on the crazy side?” Morgan taunted. “Or should I bring up the Water Star idea? Or storming Cloud Tower with the Army of Darkness?” She paused. “Is your idea to bring the Army of Darkness into the battle? Because as much as that would even the playing field, it would drain the hell out of you.”

Valkyrie hummed. “No. I’m not planning on summoning them unless I have no other choice.” She turned to face the others. “What if I channeled my inner dark side? Lucy, Crystal, and I can distract Mandragora with a deal she can’t refuse.”

“And while we’re doing that, she won’t be able to summon or awaken her little bug minions. You guys can sneak on by and be stealthily taking out her friends and the fairies and their escorts can start the search for Oritel and Marion.”

Timmy punched in a few numbers. “Well… It’s a bit of a higher chance… 67%... But with three deaths.”

Bloom frowned. “There has to be a way to do this without anyone having to die…” She wrapped her arms around herself. “Maybe the pixies should come? Piff and Amore have amazingly distracting powers. And with Tune’s sonic shriek and Chatta’s ability to hype us up…”

“Not to mention Digit is a strategist and Jolly and Lockette could help us trap the bugs.” Stella grinned. Mirta gave Cherie a wink.

“And Cherie is just as good at weather manipulation as Stormy was.” Cherie flushed.

“Mirta, you’re too kind.”

Timmy frowned, showing the numbers to Tecna. “70%. Perhaps we could get the former Company of Light involved?”

“No way.” Valkyrie, Helia, and Morgan shut down the thoughts immediately. All three had agreed back during sophomore year that the original Company of Light should be considered done. Retired.

Helia frowned. “My uncle isn’t at his full health anymore. Not to mention Headmistress Faragonda is essential in keeping the barrier to protect Alfea up.”

“And Hagen isn’t exactly who he used to be. Nor are my dads.” Morgan crossed her arms.

“My mother isn’t going anywhere near the Ancestral Witches. Not again.” Valkyrie vowed. Stella sighed.

“Then what are we going to do? We don’t want to lose anyone, and we certainly don’t want to lose to Mandragora.”

Sky gave a smile. “Who said it had to be just us? We could ask a few other students from each of the schools to join in.”

“Bishop and Karal are always looking for a good fight.” Riven winked. “And Nex never gets to show off his magic skills.”

Musa shrugged. “We could ask Galatea and Nova to join in. Galatea’s got her Enchantix and Nova has her Charmix pendant.”

“Oooh! We could ask Kimmy too. She’s an amazing fairy.” Mirta gushed.

Valkyrie gave a look to Crystal and Lucy. “We could ask Lunilla and Rubis for help.” She gave a smile. “They have been wanting payback against Mandragora after her visit to CT.”

Crystal smirked. “And it would be wicked to have Tabitha and Shilly’s help.”

Digit grinned. “I do believe we’ve managed to come up with a plan in which no one will get hurt.” She gestured over to Timmy’s thumbs up.

“All we need now is to divide who goes where and with who.” Timmy grinned. “Aside from our resident witches who will be distracting Mandragora… Hopefully.”

Crystal and Lucy walked over to Valkyrie, each placing a hand on one of her shoulders. “We’ll give the performance of our lives.”

“Mandragora won’t know what hit her.” Lucy grinned.

Valkyrie looked over to Stella. “I’m going to need your… Assistance in creating a certain look for the three of us.” She turned to the others, her focus landing on Flora. “And I’m going to ask for all of you to ignore what I say to Mandragora. We don’t need anyone giving themselves away.”

“Agreed.” Flora gave a nod. Stella raised her hand.

“What sort of look are we going for?” She grinned. “I’ve been wanting to make the three of you over for ages.”

“It’s a one-time deal, Princess. Don’t get too excited.” Lucy cut her off.

“We just need to keep Mandragora’s focus on us.” Valkyrie warned. “Nothing more or less.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They began to clean up their mess in the classroom, not wanting to leave any trace of their meeting behind.

“So what are we going to tell the teachers…?” Brandon asked. “Or is this going to be one of those things where we don’t say anything and just sort of hope for the best?”

Layla gave a sheepish smile. “It’s going to be one of those things that we just don’t talk about. What was the _one_ lesson Professor Zarathustra actually gave to us sophomore year? That it was best to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission?”

Nabu groaned. “I take it this is how our lives are going to be from now, isn’t it? Sneaking around, saying nothing to no one, and then begging for forgiveness when everything falls apart? Wonderful.”

Riven laughed. “We tried to warn you, buddy.”

“You’re stuck with us now.” Sky laughed. “Even Helia’s started to relent on trying to reign us in.” Helia groaned, pushing his hair back.

“Only because I know it won’t do any good. I learned at a young age that you can’t dissuade Valkyrie from doing something dangerous, especially not if Kota’s over there egging her on.”

Kota and Valkyrie gave sheepish smiles. “So, we like to have fun, sue us.”

“And we tried to keep _you_ and Crystal out of trouble…”

Crystal shook her head, looking to the rest of the group. “She’s a filthy liar. She never tried to keep us out of shit.”

“If anything, she led us _into_ trouble.”

“And we followed. Gladly.” Morgan lamented, giving a chuckle.

Helia sighed. “Let’s just hope this adventure ends better than our fourth grade excursion did…” He looked to Sky and Brandon. “We nearly died. Three times. In one night.”

“He exaggerates.” Kota snorted. “We only had the one near death experience. The others were just because _you_ were scared.”

Tecna shook her head, looking to Timmy. “Are we sure we’re going to survive this?”

“The numbers don’t lie. We’ve got it made so long as everyone plays their part.” Timmy looked to the ‘trouble makers’ in the group. “Please, for the love of the dragons, play your parts right.”

A laugh rang out among the group, little snickers coming from the more troubling members. (Laughter was good. If they could laugh, they’d be able to win.)


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven: Ulmoira

  1. **Ulmoira**



Red Fountain’s hangar bay opened up, revealing the multitudes of ships. They ranged from the small and sleek waveriders to the much larger carriers. Timmy and Helia, the designated pilots, began to divvy the group up into the two nearest the opening.

“Are we sure Headmaster Saladin isn’t going to notice two ships missing?” Nex asked; the junior was a bit nervous about his first non-sanctioned mission.

Kota and Nabu shared twin mischievous grins. “Don’t worry, Nex. We’ve got him taken care of.”

“Just a little illusionary trick. Nothing dangerous.” Nabu promised, glancing to the (much larger) group. “Now, everyone, please enter your designated ship and be ready for takeoff.”

Timmy’s ship: Galatea, Kimmy, Nova, Tabitha, Shilly, Musa, Riven, Bishop, Brandon, Lunilla, Karal, Mirta, and Nabu. (This team would be responsible for dealing with the bugs and the mercenaries.)

Helia’s ship: The pixies, the rest of the Winx, Morgan, Sky, Brandon, Kota, Valkyrie, Lucy, and Crystal. (This team would separate into smaller units. One to find Marion and Oritel, and one to distract Mandragora.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everyone was mentally preparing for the upcoming battle in their own way.

Helia was focused on the skies as Morgan and Jolly sat with him in silence. Sky co-piloted, keeping comms on with Timmy’s ship, Bloom keeping him company while Lockette kept her focus on Ulmoira.

Stella and Brandon were being… Stella and Brandon. (With Amore looming over and gushing the entire time.)

Kota and Crystal were murmuring and chatting, giving each other stolen glances. Lucy and Layla were talking over the comms to Mirta and Nabu.

Valkyrie was trying to keep her nerves about her, searching for her cruelest and darkest thoughts. Arms wrapped around her, pulling her flush into a plush lap. She bit back the yelp that threatened to escape her mouth, giving a bit a glare to Flora.

The fairy gave a giggle, kissing her nose. “Lighten up, Honey. We only have a few moments left and I want to make sure I see your smile.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, giving the fairy a slight smile. “You know I’m trying to get into character.”

“I get that.” Flora looked her over, playfully tugging at Valkyrie’s tie. “It’s strange seeing you in a suit that looks like… His.”

The witch snorted, shaking her head. “At least I can wear it better. And in midnight blue.” Valkyrie gave a shrug. “Besides, I’m not keeping this… It’s getting burned as soon as its usefulness runs out.”

Flora pouted at that. “Why? It looks good on you. So what if it’s modeled after his suit? You’ve made it yours.”

Valkyrie gave a smile. “I suppose I could keep it.” She gave a little shrug. “Maybe wear from time to time.”

“I do love this color on you.” Flora traced the jacket’s opening. “I’m just amazed you’re not burning up. You’re usually running hot.” Valkyrie grinned.

“Stella’s actually pretty good at clothing design, especially when working around magic effects.” Valkyrie admitted. “But I’ll deny ever saying that.”

Flora winked. “I’m sure you will.” She gestured over to Lucy and Crystal. “And who did you have Stella model their outfits after?”

Valkyrie gestured to Crystal. The tall witch had her hair tied back in a short ponytail. An army green, off-the-shoulder corset dress hugging her curves just so. A belt of rubies and sapphires lined her waist, giving her a power boost. “That is actually something she helped design herself. Something about it being a replica of what the Sorceress of Isis wears.”

She turned to point at Lucy who had her long green hair braided back. A red halter top that had web designs on her collarbone flared out a bit at her waist. She wore red trousers with a web overlay, done in an intricate pattern. “And Lucy is wearing something resembling something she saw her mother wearing in a photo…”

Flora hummed. “They’re great looks for you.”

“If you say so.” Valkyrie winked, kissing her cheek. “Let’s see if we can pull this off… For Bloom’s sake.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ships landed on Rumia, the realm adjacent to Ulmoira. Everyone filed out, confusion on a few of the faces. “This doesn’t seem like Ulmoira…” Nova looked around. “In fact, this realm seems… Alive.”

“We can’t enter directly into Ulmoira without alerting Mandragora to our arrival. So instead, we’re going to realm hop to keep the element of surprise.” Timmy explained, looking to Crystal, Lucy, and Valkyrie.

“And our infamous witch trio are going in first to draw Mandragora to them, all while we enter in behind them and start our real mission.” Sky followed up. “And that is to find the King and Queen of Domino and to get the drop on Mandragora’s minions.”

Bloom stepped into the center. “Fairies, we’re going to need our wings!” Bright lights curled around each of the fairies, changing them into their Winx (with Charmix pendants) and their Enchantix forms. Galatea gave a grin.

“She’s going to pay for attacking Melody.”

“And Zenith.” Rubis agreed, looking to Bishop. “And Eraklyon, I suppose.” A tease directed at him, Brandon, and Sky.

Valkyrie looked to the groups, taking a deep breath. “Be safe out there, guys. We don’t want to lose anyone.”

A group ‘goodbye’ took place, something that seemed common for them to do now. (Just in case goodbyes, promises to return.)

(Even the fresher faces were preparing for the worst, trying to make sure everyone had a sense of closure before walking into the Valley of Death that was Ulmoira.)

“One last kisses”, “one more hug”.

Valkyrie turned to Lucy and Crystal, giving a solemn nod. Game time. “You two ready to perform?”

“Lead the way, Fearless Leader.” Crystal gave a bow.

“We’ll be right behind you.” Lucy teased, gesturing for the smaller witch to open the portal into the Ancestral home realm.

Two steps, that was all it took to enter into the abyss, ready to face whatever came after her and her coven.

‘ _Mandragora will not survive this day_.’ Her dragon vowed, making his presence known under Valkyrie’s skin as she let her body language change. (She had to play this just right. She had to.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They summoned a will-o-wisp to locate Mandragora, flying over the harsh landscape of Ulmoira. Currently, there were no active storms, but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t occur.

Each witch allowed her core to glow just so, using them as a light source as they chased the ball of energy toward its target.

_Overwhelming feelings of despair and fear entered into her system, her flames threatening to burn everything and everyone around her. She needed to protect herself, there was danger, there was-_

Valkyrie held one hand in the other, pressing down on the pressure point between her thumb and index finger until the feelings dissipated. “Keep your guards up, ladies. Illusionary magic is in the air, and it’s rich with empathic powers.”

Lucy and Crystal gave an affirmative noise, their hands going to do the same to themselves. (Pain protected against illusions. Gave the brain something to focus on that was actually real.)

The will-o-wisp stopped near the ruins of what appeared to be a temple, a familiar figure standing in wait for them. “I see you’ve managed to through my illusions… I’m not surprised though, given who your instructor was.” Mandragora tilted her head as the younger witches landed. “What brings you to me? An attempt at stopping me? Or perhaps you wish to make a bargain?”

Valkyrie gave a smug smile, getting herself into position. Front and center, back straight, hands behind her back, her confidence oozing into arrogance territory.

“Actually, Mandragora… We did come to bargain.” She gave a bow, one that paralleled the ones her father used to do. “If you’ll indulge me, that is?” A smile at the end of the sentence was used to pique her interest. Having Mandragora interested was mandatory.

Mandragora gave a chuckle, a glint of amusement in her eyes. “Well isn’t this is a surprise? My Mistresses have told me you’ve refused them at every step. What changed?”

Valkyrie scoffed, pushing her glasses up. “Lady Mandragora, nothing has changed. I _will_ _not_ subjugate myself to serving witches who got themselves killed. That would be like trying to serve a king that has long since passed away. It just isn’t done.”

She tsked, looking to Lucy and Crystal, their cue.

Lucy stepped forward, waving her hand to show a projection. “You see, the Ancestral Witches had a good idea, but they decided to work harder instead of smarter.” Lucy intoned, glancing to Valkyrie with a wicked smile.

“But you see, we’ve got something better planned. We already have Princess Bloom and her little pixie friends practically eating out of the palm of our hands.” Lucy chuckled.

“You see, they think we’re truly on their side. Honestly, it’s been difficult trying to keep a straight face around them, they’re so earnest and,” Crystal wrinkled her nose a bit, “ _pure_.” She said the word with venom. “They really believe we want to save the Balance of the realms.”

“And in a sense, we do. We just think it would be best for all to fly under our domain, and with a little patience, we’ll get there.” Valkyrie gave a twisted smile, showing her teeth. “And because we’re such _good friends_ of Princess Bloom and her little entourage, they’ll give us their kingdoms willingly.”

Crystal gave a dreamy sigh. “I can see it now, a perfect world for us dark realmers.”

“And with the light realmers completely complacent.” Lucy smirked, clapping the image away with her hands.

Mandragora tilted her head, giving a frown. “It does sound like a tempting offer… But tell me, how exactly will this work? Sure, they trust you now, but what happens when you start pushing?”

“That’s just the thing, my Lady.” Valkyrie laughed. “We won’t have to push. They’ll _offer_ us the realms on a silver platter. Practically _beg_ us to run things. And all we have to do is keep up this façade of being best friends with the princesses of Domino, Andros, and Solaria. Hell, at this stage, we even have the princesses of Melody and Linphea on our side.”

The older witch raised an eyebrow. “And what of your… Fairy-pet? Won’t she have objections to this… Plan?”

Valkyrie tsked, wagging her finger. “Lady Mandragora, I don’t believe you’re getting it. I have that fairy wrapped around my finger. If I say what I’m doing is the right thing, she’ll fawn over me and _help_ me do it.” She gave a smile. “She looks at me like I’ve hung the stars. I’m not going to let that sort of adoration go.”

“Even you had Darkar.”

Mandragora glowered. “I did. And you killed him. Your own father too.”

“I had to kill them.” Valkyrie shrugged, nonchalant as she paced to the side, looking the area over. Dead trees and boulders. Webs and tiny insects.

“They were so old school and hell bent on following the orders of the Ancestral Witches.” She snorted, waving her hand in a ‘what can you do’ manner. “While I admired their loyalty, I couldn’t let them stop me from doing what needed to be done.”

“Besides, it gave her, and by extension, me and Crystal, some much needed brownie points with the pixie squad.” Lucy tilted her head. “They learned to _trust_ us.”

“A stupid move on their part, really. But here we are.” Crystal chuckled.

Valkyrie looked to Mandragora, giving her a slight smile. “Now my dear, Mandragora… Are you in or out?” She turned on her heels, looking about.

“And please, do tell me quickly… I’d like to know before anyone starts to realize we’re not actually at a Seminar for the Stars event. It’d be a shame if our cover was blown by a simple mishap.” Valkyrie turned back to Mandragora, extending a hand. “Well?”

Mandragora went to take her hand.

_Scree!_

An arachnoid spy came down from its web, displaying a fight over its eyes. “What was that you were saying about a mishap, Valkyrie?” Mandragora glowered, her hands touching the amulet around her neck.

She shifted into an aracanhi, large and powerful. Angry.

Valkyrie swore, her flames coming to create a shield around her, Lucy, and Crystal from the barrage of stingers sent their way.

‘ _Bloom… We’ve been discovered_.’ Valkyrie shared between her fire to Bloom’s, hoping the message got across.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight: The End of Mourning

  1. **The End of Mourning**



Mandragora’s rage quickly filled the realm, her swarms coming to life in an attempt to overtake them.

They could hear fighting from all directions, swords clashing and spells cast. Magic fueling the air around them. All a distraction to keep Mandragora busy. All in the hopes that Bloom could find and save her parents.

Wasting no time, Valkyrie and her coven joined into the fray, trying to stay fast and accurate.

So far, Nova and Stella seemed to be doing the best. Their powers over light nearly blinding the creatures Mandragora summoned. Lunilla and Crystal decided to join in their battle, using their powers over moonlight and crystals to power up and supercharge the light blasts the two fairies produced.

Helia trapped and attacked them, holding them in place for Lucy and Morgan to summon natural predators to exterminate them.

Bishop, Timmy, Tecna, and Rubis were holding off a horde of their own, Musa’s sound waves managing to help crush them back.

“ _This is freshman year all over again!”_ Lucy growled into their link, forcing back one of the keek bugs.

Valkyrie grinned, an idea forming. She began burning back the horde that had tried to trap her and Layla together. “Layla, get back. Things are about to get rotten.”

“Do your thing, Val.” Layla summoned a morphix-based sword, charging into the horde keeping Nex and Nabu back.

Valkyrie placed her hands on the ground, feeling for the negative magic around Ulmoira. Screeches and shrieks echoed into the realm, small portals opening up in the ground.

The Army of Darkness, awakened and angry. “Get them!” Valkyrie commanded, her voice merging with her dragon’s as her creatures began to fight.

Mandragora charged her, the ground shaking as stingers flung Valkyrie back into one of the dead trees. “You think you’re clever? That your little decayed army can stop me?” She growled. “Fool!”

Vines erupted around Mandragora’s legs, forcing her upward and trapping her effectively. “You don’t get to say shit to her!” Flora spoke with that eerily calm demeanor. (And swearing. That’s rare for her.) “Perhaps a little taste of your own medicine should do.” She waved her hands, the vines sprouting thorns to dig into Mandragora’s skin.

The older witch cried out a bit, her army of insects halting for a moment. (Long enough for the rest of the group to deliver a few devastating blows.)

Valkyrie dropped to her feet, grabbing her glasses and rushing to Flora, a grin on her face. “Nice save.”

“Anytime.” Flora giggled, her demeanor softening again. Valkyrie took her hand, raising up to whisper in her ear.

“Up to take advantage of a golden opportunity?” Valkyrie asked, squeezing the fairy’s hand.

“With pleasure.” Flora squeezed back, her magic coiling around and into Valkyrie.

She could feel her flames building, merging with the floral based magic. At first she thought it would use the flowers as fuel, something to burn through until ignition, but that wasn’t the case.

Her dragon projected himself into the flames that surrounded her and Flora, an armor of thorns and poisoned blossoms adorning his fiery skin as he charged after Mandragora, burning away the vines and directly into her being.

She shrieked out, the amulet around her neck shattering and forcing her back into her human form. The smell of burning skin filled the air, and the cries from her insects echoed.

Sonic blasts and light beams overtook the realm, lightning carrying a different weight as flood waters rose.

Mandragora would not win this fight.

The witch screamed out, getting to her feet. “You won’t win this round!” She growled out, her hands raising into the air.

A sickly green glow filled the sky, locusts swarming the air and stingers shooting off like arrows.

Valkyrie swore, shoving Flora down to the ground to prevent her from getting hit.

Hit.

She took in a sharp breath, feeling something stabbing her in the back of the neck. Hands grabbed her hair, forcing her up. “You won’t win.” Mandragora hissed into her ear, holding tightly as she yanked whatever it was out of Valkyrie’s neck.

Warm. She felt really warm. “I don’t have to win, I just have to make sure you lose.” Valkyrie spat out, grabbing onto Mandragora’s hand with her own.

Flames. She ignited fires inside of Mandragora’s veins, forcing the witch to let her go.

She groaned, hitting the rocky road hard. Hands wrapped around her, trying to help her up. Soft hands.

Flora.

Valkyrie shot her a smile, trying to focus her vision.

Blurring. Everything was blurring together. And she had her glasses _on_. (Fuck…)

‘ _You need to call a retreat. Now. We can’t fight like this._ ’ Her dragon roared in her ear. He sounded hoarse. (Could a spirit get hoarse?)

Mandragora cackled, getting to her feet. “You’re going to pay for that.”

A bright light shined around the realm, a feeling of light and warmth rushing into their beings. ‘ _She’s alive. Retreat now. While you can._ ’

“What the hell was that?!” Mandragora growled, looking about. Her insects had started to retreat or vanish, the lights forcing them away.

Valkyrie laughed, leaning into Flora. “All hail the King and Queen of Domino! All hail the Princess of Domino!” Valkyrie taunted, watching as a flaming sword flew toward Mandragora, cutting into her. She burned, inside out, she burned.

Relief. She felt so relieved.

And tired. She felt so tired. Exhausted.

Cheers rang out, but she couldn’t make out what was said, exactly. She did hear a phrase or two. Magix. Marion. Oritel. Future.

But it ran together.

“Baby… You’re warmer than normal. Are you okay?” She could vaguely hear Flora in her ear, could somewhat see jade eyes looking her over carefully.

“’M fine… Just… Tired.” She felt her eyes closing against her will, a sharp pain starting down her back from her neck.

Flora started to yell something out… But Valkyrie’d be damned if she knew what she was saying before everything faded to black…


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine: Reconnect

  1. **Reconnect**



_She’d never felt so sick._

_Her very blood felt like it was boiling from the inside out, her body aching. Her vision was blurred, her hearing distorted._

_Everything was moving fast and slow at the same time._

_Nothing seemed to make sense, nothing felt real._ She _didn’t feel real. (Was her skin peeling off? Was her heart still pumping?)_

_“I warned you. But you didn’t listen.” His voice boomed, the Dragon coiling up to her. “You never listened.”_

_“I wasn’t exactly in a position to retreat.” Valkyrie reminded him; her voice hoarse. He snorted, bits of flames flaring form his nostrils._

_The Dragon looked her over, muttering something under his breath. “You’re lucky you weren’t killed immediately. Your… Partner’s fairy dust and Princess Layla’s healing waters have done wonders…” He paused. “And Princess Bloom has allowed us to draw from her life magic.”_

_“Meaning?”_

_“We might just survive this assassination attempt.”_

_“Assassination?” Valkyrie tried to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. He didn’t seem amused at her tone, his head bending down to be face-to-face with hers._

_“Yes. We are a powerful being, and Mandragora certainly tried to kill us.” He reminded her. “Therefore, it was an assassination attempt.”_

_She sighed. “I suppose.” Valkyrie looked around, noticing they seemed to be in the void. “Where are we?”_

_“A place of rest.” He laid his body down, his scales glimmering. “We must regroup our strength.”_

_“How long?”_

_“Until we’re healed.”_

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie woke up, gasping for air.

Chilled. She was laying somewhere chilled with a thin blanket over her, and something was beeping and beeping and… She couldn’t see. It was all blurred.

“Easy. Easy.” A calming voice soothed, the smell of lilies and hyacinths wafting around her. Soothed her. (Relaxed her.)

And back to sleep she drifted, as if nothing happened…

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie once again found herself waking up, gradually this time.

“How are you feeling?” Her mother’s voice asked, a layer of concern mixed into it. “Do you feel okay?”

The younger witch found herself sore and stiff, her throat dry. But other than that, she felt fine. “I’m… Okay. Sore.” She winced as her throat scratched.

She felt someone press something into her hands. A glass of water. (Wonderful. Just what she needed. She didn’t even care how she must have looked as she guzzled it down.)

“We’re glad… You had us all worried.” Morgan’s voice started up. “I mean, one second we were celebrating our victory over Mandragora and the next you’re going down like a light.”

A soft hand laced its fingers with hers. Flora’s. “Don’t ever scare us like that again.”

Valkyrie gave a soft smile. “I’m fine… I promise.” She squinted her eyes, glancing around the room. Cheshire was at her feet, trying to stay a healthy distance. Her mother and Morgan were at her left, Flora on her right. “Are my glasses okay? Did they survive the fight?”

“They did. But you’re not going to need them right now. You’re supposed to focus on one thing. Resting.”

Valkyrie groaned. “I’ve had enough resting. I can feel this… Energy just swirling around and I need to let it go.” She whined.

“Not until you’re discharged.” Griffin warned.

Morgan shook her head. “You can wait another day. Trust me.” She snorted. “Not like anything interesting’s going on right now. Just studying for finals and prepping for Graduation.”

Valkyrie swore softly. “How behind am I?”

“Not enough to warrant any sort of worry. I assure you.” Griffin placed her hand on Valkyrie’s knee. “In fact, I’m half-tempted to waive your need for a final exam. Yours, Lucy’s, and Crystal’s.”

“How are they?” Valkyrie asked, worry overtaking her. They were connected by a coven bond; had they been poisoned by proxy?

Flora squeezed her hand. “They’re perfectly fine. In fact, they got to head back to CT yesterday with a full-bill of health. Granted, they’re worried about you, but they’re fine otherwise.”

Valkyrie let out a sigh, laying back against the pillow. “Good. I couldn’t stand for them to be…” She shook her head. “How’s Bloom dealing with her birth parents?”

“They’re doing great. There’s been an adjustment period and Vanessa and Mike have met Oritel and Marion… And Daphne… And Domino is undergoing a renovation of sorts so they can be caught up with the rest of the Magical Dimension. Something the original Company of Light is assisting with.” Flora relayed.

“And from what I can tell, they’re making remarkable progress.” Griffin hummed. “They’re a bit upset at everything they’ve lost… But it’s made them that much more appreciative of what they have. I know they’re pleased with Bloom and how she’s turned out.”

Valkyrie gave a smile. “Good. They deserve a happy ending.”

Cheshire moved up her body, laying on her chest and nuzzling her face as if to say that she did too. She chuckled, rubbing his head with her free hand. “Relax, Ches… I’m fine. I’m fine.”

“For now.” Morgan’s voice had a warning in it. “Next time you’re poisoned, Cousin Dear, do us a favor and _tell_ someone. Or I’ll kill you myself.”

Valkyrie rolled her eyes, but raised her hand, a vow. “Next time a crazy witch poisons me, you’ll definitely be the first to know.” Valkyrie teased.

“As it should be.” Morgan gave a little cough. “Now that we’ve got that out of the way, we need to discuss graduation and what we’re doing. Are we going to have a major party thrown together or are we going to want to do our own things with our family or what?”

“I think we should wait and decide that when she’s had a little more time to recover.” Flora teased. Valkyrie swallowed.

“How about a family dinner and any party can be reserved for Stella to plan? She’s the party Princess after all.”

Griffin chuckled. “She takes after Luna. There was never a party that woman didn’t plan or know about.”

“Sounds like Stella.” Flora giggled, her hand squeezing tight. “Miele and my parents are going to be glad to see you’re okay. And Amarok will definitely be giving you kisses.” Valkyrie wrinkled her nose a bit.

“Have I mentioned that I’m a cat person?”

A laugh went through the room, all four laughing as Cheshire looked them over, confused. (Valkyrie just stroked his head, whispering to him that it was all going to be okay, that it was nothing he needed to worry with.)


	30. Chapter Thirty: Beginning of the End

  1. **Beginning of the End**



They couldn’t help but laugh, toasting their milkshakes in the air.

Round one of finals was over, Valkyrie was out of the hospital and doing well, and all three witches had finished their senior projects before presentation.

(And had decided a night out in Magix was for the best.)

Fries, pizza, burgers, soda, and milkshakes. Junk food to comfort their souls as they took in their last few moments before their exams became to much.

Sure, they’d had the options to bypass their exams given the fact they helped save the realm of Domino and the entire Magical Dimension, but they decided against it. None of them wanted it to be said they got special privileges due to Valkyrie being the Headmistress’ daughter and that they were all in a coven together. It just wouldn’t do.

Valkyrie closed her eyes, enjoying her chocolate milkshake and its cooling effects. Lucy and Crystal laughed about prom, talking dresses and suits and how it would be held at Red Fountain this year.

Which led to talks of graduation. It’d be done in Magix Park, a three-way ceremony for all three schools.

Guardian fairies and Guardian witches would be announced, those who planned to be fairy godmothers would be awarded, the royals in each school would be presented with their family’s crest, witches awarded their own athames (or the family athame if it were an only child), the heroes would get their family weapons. Anyone who’d been deemed to be a Nymph or Sorceress would also be gushed over.

Awards for those who had improved or who had been especially gifted. The Melodians and Harmonics who were graduating would perform. A grand time for all.

Lucy sighed. “So, what are the after-graduation plans? I know we’ve not really talked about them much with everything that’s been going on… But…”

“I’m thinking of doing a graduate course at Cloud Tower on Gemology and Ancient Jewelry. And if I do well, I can start working at the Museum of Magix.” Crystal grinned, though her eyes didn’t quite light up. “I’m kind of nervous though… Considering I’ll be spending so much time with Eldoran and Pandora…”

“Not to mention it’ll cut in on some personal time?” Lucy half-teased, using her leg to nudge Crystal’s knee. The gem witch snorted.

“Something like that…” She played a bit with straw, looking at her half-gone shake. “At least I won’t have to live on campus… And Kota won’t be too far…”

“What is our brave little wizard planning on doing?” Valkyrie asked, leaning back in her seat. Crystal chuckled a bit, shaking her head.

“Believe it or not, he and a few of the other guys were offered a chance at the Magical Dimensions Cadet Training Program. If he completes it properly, he’ll be able to patrol and protect nearly any realm he wants to.” The pride in her voice made Valkyrie grin. Crystal really did love her wizard, even if she did want to kill him on occasion.

Though Valkyrie was curious which of the others had been offered the same chance. “Who else’ll be going?” Lucy asked before she did, the green-haired witch leaning in. “I mean, if he goes with people he knows, he’ll do better…”

“Bishop and Riven are the only two I know for sure are going in. And I think Karal and Joseph… Timmy was offered to take a captain’s training course, but he turned it down in favor of some program he’d enrolled in at Zeni Tech.”

“Right. He wanted to work on his engineering skills to help create some new tech his dads were working on…” Valkyrie recalled from a conversation she’d had with the nerdy redhead. He was so excited about it, babbling to everyone who would listen. (And Tecna was so proud of him, showering him in affection and praise. Though it could have been because the two would be entering the school year together.)

Lucy smiled. “Well I already feel safer knowing the guys are going to try and protect us.” A half-tease. “Assuming they learn to work together.”

All three cackled a bit at that, all-too familiar with the egos the Red Fountain boys seemed to have. “What about you, Lucy? Any plans set in stone?” Valkyrie asked.

“I’m going to be taken a few graduate courses too… Mainly on beast taming and a special session with Ediltrude.” Lucy gave a slight smile. “She’s promised to show me the quickest way to charm insects and with Professor Tanae teaching me more in depth about beast taming, I can be an insect handler on Inseca.”

It was a big deal for that realm to be able to handle all insects. Especially those who were venomous or known for their aggression. They were the first line of defense for the realm, and a major contributor to public safety. “And Mirta?” Valkyrie asked.

Lucy flushed a bit, her grin unable to hide. “So, you know how she’s been working summers at her cousin Sladen’s boutique and salon? Well, he’s become impressed with Mirta’s eye for detail and color, even if she’s not a stylist herself… So, he’s offered to pay her tuition for this stylist school on Tides.”

Valkyrie and Crystal clapped, proud for Mirta. (Yes, she was a bit shy. And no, she wasn’t much of a stylist herself… But thanks to her illusion and psychic powers, little details and patterns easily came to her. She just needed a little more guidance…)

“She’s so lucky. The only thing my cousin’s ever given me is a snowball in the face.” Valkyrie chuckled.

“And mine have only brought me headaches and misery.” Crystal shook her head. “Honestly, I don’t know why they show up if all they’re going to do is start fights with my brothers…”

Valkyrie wrapped an arm around her. “Family. The source of all headaches and heartaches.” She teased.

Crystal snorted, removing Valkyrie’s arm from her. “What about you? What are your life plans?” Crystal rested her chin on her hands. “Well?”

“Independent research…” Valkyrie grabbed a fry and ate it, as if that would be a sufficient answer.

“Val.”

She swallowed. “My senior project has… Shown me that there’s so much more to magic than we realize and that all magic is connected at the root to each other.” Valkyrie tapped her fingers on her milkshake glass, trying to find the words. “So, I’m going to start investigating just how deep that goes…”

“And just where are you going to set up shop?” Crystal asked, moving to cross her arms. Valkyrie gave a slight smile.

“ShadowHaunt. We did set it up oh-so nicely.”

Lucy hummed. “We did. Any chance it’ll be open for crashers? Like me and Mirta and Crystal?” Lucy asked. Valkyrie snickered.

“You do have your own rooms. Remember?” Valkyrie teased.

Crystal shrugged. “Could be fun. At least we’d be safe and out of the way while we studied and researched…” She gave a twisted smile. “And what of Flora?”

“She’s going to be helping her dad with his conservation forest. Which will hopefully segue into helping with the upkeep of Eldora’s Botanical Gardens.” Memories of the garden had Valkyrie smiling and flushing, quickly trying to drink her soda before her friends caught on.

Crystal snickered. Too late. “I’m sure she’ll have a _wonderful time_ getting there.” Lucy laughed, shaking her head.

“ _Patience_ is a virtue. And you do sing of her _praises_.” Lucy taunted. Valkyrie flipped them both off, reaching across the table to steal Lucy’s remaining fries.

“Just for that, I get the rest of these.” She ate a few, puffing out her lips a bit. “Bitches.”

Crystal and Lucy just cackled more; a few jokes cracked at the smaller witch’s expense. “What’s Morgan planning on doing?” Crystal asked after she was finally done with laughing. Her face was red from the mirth.

“She and Helia are headed to Callisto. He’s been commissioned by his,” Valkyrie paused, trying to remember just how he and the King of Callisto were related. “Distant cousin? Or is it his great-uncle? Anyway… The King of Callisto’s commissioned Helia to create a few model sketches for his new barracks and ships. And because Callisto has such a varied environment, Morgan is going to use it to further her research on dark realm plants surviving on light realms.”

“Is everyone in your family obsessed with research?” Lucy asked, tilting her head. “You, your cousin, your uncles. Your mother.”

Valkyrie gave a sheepish grin. “Knowledge is power.”

“However, ignorance is bliss.” Crystal countered. Lucy snorted.

“Not in our case. It’s usually what fucks us over.”

“Here, here.”


	31. Chapter Thirty-One: The End of an Era

  1. **The End of An Era**



Valkyrie’s body shook from her nerves, a feeling of lightning running up and down her back. It was really happening. She was going to graduate from Cloud Tower. (Not just graduate, but graduate with honors. Top of her class.)

The stage was set up in the center of Magix park, bleachers and chairs and sections decorated the park. Families were piling in, even the royal ones. (Surrounded by their guards, of course, but they were there.)

Cloud Tower seniors lined up the left, Alfea’s to the right, and Red Fountain’s in the center. The teachers were in front of the lines, the headmasters at the very front.

Valkyrie and her classmates were in the Cloud Tower blue robes, the crest of CT emblazoned on the front. Flora and her classmates wore the burgundy of Alfea, it’s crest on their heart. And the boys were wearing their red and gold uniforms, a drastic change from the blue and white they normally wore.

“Just two more minutes. In two minutes, we’ll be Cloud Tower graduates.” Lucy giggled, arms wrapping around Valkyrie. Crystal grinned.

“I’m so nervous… I can feel the literal ground around me just… Shaking.”

Valkyrie smiled. “It’s going to be the most amazing and terrifying part of our lives.” She gave a smile. “At least we’re going through this together.”

Parents were taking pictures with their graduates, small snapshots for such a grand moment. (Even a few Cloud Tower parents were taking loving photos.)

“Lucy! A quick picture please?” Her dad asked, walking up to the trio. “Just for a moment?” Blue eyes lit up, green hair spiked.

Lucy grinned, pulling Crystal and Valkyrie into a pose, camera clicking a few times. “Thank you, Dad. Now… Before you start to embarrass me?” She teased.

He rolled his eyes. “Alright, alright. I get it.” He winked. “Be good, girls.” He made his way to his seat, Lucy’s grandparents giving a wave.

“It’s so packed…” Crystal looked around the center of the park. “So many people… I’m getting even more nervous. When are we starting, again?”

“Soon, Ms. Lane.” Ediltrude placed her hand on Crystal’s shoulder. “I promise.”

“Don’t be nervous. You’ve faced countless criminals.” Zarathustra teased.

“Now, Zarathustra… Crowds are a different phobia, you know that.” Pandora explained. “Honestly, this is just a matter of ceremony, girls.”

Griffin clapped her hands. “Places, ladies!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The music started up, harmonizing around the stage and the clearing of Magix Park. The graduating classes walked behind their teachers and Heads, their footsteps falling in rhythm of the song.

All the students filed in, taking their seats behind their professors after the heads raised their hands and lowered them. (A silent command.)

Saladin, Griffin, and Faragonda took their places at the podiums, waiting for the camera flashes to stop. “This year’s graduating class is something spectacular. This is the class that has survived the Army of Darkness, Lord Darkar, Valtor, and Lady Mandragora. Year after year, they faced off against, and won against, impossible obstacles.” Professor Saladin started.

Griffin gave a smile. “We are so proud of these students, not just for beating the odds, but for coming up with newer and more inventive ways of defeating their enemies and defending one another.”

“Granted, there were a few students who stayed closer to the front lines than most…” Faragonda agreed. “But each and every student here did their part to protect their classmates, their schools, and their realms. Each student bested foes that had even the original Company of Light out of breath.”

“So with that, please give our graduates a welcome round of applause for their hard work, dedication, sense of morality, and their loyalty to one another.” Saladin raised his hands, urging the crowd on.

A roar of applause ripped through the audience, as well as the students and teachers. (It was truly something to be proud of, knowing they were part of something grander than themselves.)

The applause died down, allowing the heads to continue. “We’re going to start this year’s graduation with Red Fountain. Please hold any applause until all Red Fountain graduates have received their commendations and their diplomas.” Faragonda and Griffin bowed to Saladin, taking their seats.

Each of the Red Fountain teachers stood up, armed with the diplomas and a few other items as they took their places.

Saladin read off the names, slightly teary-eyed as he watched each of the young men walk the stage and receive their diplomas and awards.

After the awards and diplomas were handed out, crowns magically appeared on the royalty in the class, signifying who they were and where they would be heading. (Sky wore the Crown of Draconis with pride, though Nabu still seemed unsure of wearing the Crown of the Ocean.)

The men in their families arose, taking to the stage in an orderly fashion to present the graduates with the family weapons, though a few of them seemed to be weaponless.

“Because of their courage on the front lines of our… Mishaps… The past few years, a former Company of Light member created special weapons for them that he would like to present.” Saladin gestured to the right, welcoming Hagen onto the stage.

Gasps and coos could be heard from the audience (and from the students) as he gave out the weapons he’d created, explaining their meaning and their materials to the ones receiving the gifts.

Prince Sky received a sword made from what appeared to lapis lazuli. It was a beautiful shade of dark blue, and a perfect fit for Sky to wield. (Meant to help with his clarity and focus, because as a ruler he will need it.)

Riven was given a sabre created from rubies. Red and distinct, something meant to stand out as much as Riven himself. (Ruby is for confidence and determination, something pertinent to Riven.)

Brandon was given a long sword made of sunstone. Orange and copper tones swirled in the blade, a beautiful sight. (Sunstone for growth and fairness because Brandon was one of the more level-headed of the group.)

Nabu received a staff with an aquamarine centerpiece. (It was meant to act as a conduit for magic, helping him tap into the power of the ocean.)

Kota also received a staff, but his had a sapphire centerpiece. (A mental and psychic conduit, perfect for generating illusions.)

Timmy was gifted with a rapier sort of sword made of a form of purplish red garnet. (Clarity and a means to try and release shame and fear. Perfect for shy Timmy.)

Helia was given a whip tinted with amethysts, a good weapon for someone who preferred to wrangle their opponents instead of fighting them directly. (And amethysts are used for intuition and protection, another plus.)

After Hagen’s presentation, the boys took their seats after giving a final bow to professor Saladin. He gave a bow in return, taking his seat and gesturing for his teachers to the do same.

Next up was Cloud Tower.

Griffin took her place at the podium and her teachers began to spread out.

Their names were called, one by one. One by one they took their diplomas and their awards, the nerves echoing through them.

Valkyrie was so relieved to finally have hers in her hand; she barely noticed as some of her classmates began to wear their crowns. (The royals from the dark realms, showing their allegiance to their families and their people.)

Ms. Griffin cleared her throat as the students finished with their diplomas, ready for the next round of receiving. Athames. Specialized daggers for rituals. Each student was gifted one from her family, the women slowly taking the stage and delivering them to their daughters.

Or granddaughter’s, as with Lucy and Valkyrie.

Theodora grinned, placing the Sylvane Athame in Valkyrie’s hands, clasping her right hand tight on the dagger. “Use it well, my dear, and it will serve you loyally.” Valkyrie grinned, kissing her grandmother’s cheek.

“Always, Nana. Always.”

The women returned to the audience as one more announcement from Cloud Tower was called. “As always, the dark realms have lost a few of their guardian witches. A few resigned, a few left for illness or age. And some simply retired.” Griffin gave a slight smile.

“And now, I get the pleasure of announcing the new guardian witches from this class.” She waved her hand, a few specialized pendants appearing on a few of the students. “The new Guardian of Leao, Endora Stallone. The new Guardian of Medein, Lynel Fisher. The Guardian of Panderas, Shilly Isla.” Griffin and the audience clapped, giving a smile. “Good luck, ladies, you’re going to need it.”

With that, the witches bowed, going to take their seats. Griffin and the teachers followed suite, watching as Faragonda and her teachers took the stage.

Names were called, diplomas and awards received, and a small musical number from Musa and a few other Harmonics and Melodians filled the silence, everyone watching in amazement as the royals received their crowns.

Including Bloom.

Layla and Stella seemed to radiate perfection wearing their respective tiaras (the Tiara of the Stars and the Tiara of Waves).

Bloom still seemed in awe of hers, the Tiara of Embers fitting her perfectly despite her never having worn it before.

“Just as Ms. Griffin announced the new guardian witches from the dark realms, I am pleased to announce the new guardian fairies from the light realms.” Faragonda grinned, looking to her girls. A wave of her hand had the pendants appear on a few of the fairies, gasps heard from them.

“The new guardian of Zenith, Tecna Mode. The new guardian of Melody is Musa Kai. The new guardian of Solaria is Amaryl Carmichael. And the new guardian of Lunaris is Kimberly Shae. I wish you all the best of luck.”

She clapped, watching as the students sat back down. Griffin and Saladin once again approached their podiums, giving the closing statements.

They thanked the parents for assisting with their students and helping them prepare for the grander worlds. They thanked the students for their bravery and can-do attitudes throughout the years. They thanked their staff and teachers for sticking it out and helping make the schools as safe as they could be.

“And now, Graduates, it’s time.” Griffin grinned, waving her hand.

“Remove your caps and robes.” Faragonda laughed.

“You’re officially, done with high school.” Saladin chuckled, watching as the students cheered and tossed their caps into the air, their robes undone. (All wore formal attire underneath, as per the requests of the teachers. Gold and Red for Red Fountain students, Blue for Cloud Tower students, and Burgundy for Alfea’s students.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Valkyrie shook her head, trying not to laugh so hard. “Wait, wait, wait. My mom tried to spell you?” She looked to Alyssa, then to her mother. “Mom?”

Griffin rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her drink. “I had my reasons.”

Flora chuckled. “Oh really? Mom, what did you do to upset Ms. Griffin?” Flora teased at her mother.

Griffin wagged a finger at Flora. “Just Griffin, now. I’m not your teacher and I’m off the clock.”

“For once.” Salvador teased. “She’s usually all business. You’ve met her.”

Rhodos snickered. “I remember she ran a tight ship at the Fortress of Light… Oritel used to get so angry that we’d listen to you first.”

Theodora sighed. “My daughter has that presence…”

“More like she probably had them all freaked out.” Valkyrie teased at her mother. “What was it you used to tell me and Morgan? ‘Do what I say or you’ll regret it?’” Morgan laughed.

“There was seldom warnings, Cousin. You know that. We tended to jump into trouble before anyone could question anything.”

“Which is why we fished you out of the messes you managed to get yourselves into.” Saladin taunted. Helia flushed.

“They were mostly Valkyrie and Kota’s ideas.”

“Snitch!” Valkyrie tossed at fry at him playfully. Helia tossed it back, giving her a look.

“You can’t snitch to people who already know what’s going on.”

Miele shook her head, looking far too sage for a fourteen-year-old. “I dunno, Flora’s snitched on me plenty… Even if Mom and Dad supposedly knew what was going on.”

“For your own good, Miele.”

“I was just trying to help you and your friends save the magical dimension.”

“You nearly got yourself killed.”

Flora’s grandmother, Rose, snorted. “That’s something everyone at this table can say… Isn’t it Thea?”

Theodora chuckled. “We all have some stories though.”

“I just hope we can stay alive long enough to tell those stories.” Palladium sighed, taking a bite from his salad. “Of course, with the Winx Club out of Alfea and Valkyrie’s coven out of Cloud Tower… Things should quieten down again.”

Valkyrie, Morgan, Helia, and Flora gave scandalized looks. All feigned hurt or outrage, chastising and questioning Palladium and his thoughts on the matter, making the rest of the table laugh.

Even Helia’s parents seemed to enjoy the moment, for once acting as if on the same page.

“Has anyone heard when Domino will be opening it’s borders and portals again? I’m sort of anxious to get a real chance to sit down with Marion…” Alyssa brought up, changing the subject. Rhodos hummed.

“Oritel and I discussed that a bit today while waiting for the graduation to start… Won’t be much longer now.”

“Bloom’s so excited, and Stella’s been commissioning dresses for the rest of us.” Flora laughed. “I just hope they aren’t ridiculously poofy ballgowns.” Valkyrie tilted her head, giving a teasing smile.

“And here I thought you loved those.”

“I do. Just not on me.” Flora shook her head, taking a sip of her milkshake. “I’m way too tall and they don’t seem to fit right.”

“Stella can make anything fit right and look good.” Morgan offered. “I mean, I’ve seen the girl make Wizgiz look good.”

Palladium laughed a bit, as if remembering. “Oh that was such a disaster… But Griselda and I held that over him for months.”

“Transfiguration spell went wrong.” Helia filled in Miele and the others who were lost on that sentiment. “Stella turned professor Wizgiz into… What did you say it was…? A Pegasus?”

Morgan snickered. “A pink Pegasus.”

“She definitely sounds like Luna’s child.” Hannah teased, shaking her head. “That girl tried her best to make _everything_ shiny and perfect and just _so_.”

“At least the Queen of Solaria has a good eye.” Harley taunted back. Helia shot them both a look.

“Remember what I said? Behave.”

“Children.” They both spoke, looking exasperatedly to the other parents. Griffin gave a solemn nod and Rhodos and Alyssa snickered.

“They grow up so fast.”


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two: The Start of an Age

  1. **The Start of An Age**



She couldn’t help but fidget with the bracelet on her wrist, the charm glowing with a soft blue hue. According to the Bartleby guy, it was the only thing that would allow Valkyrie to stay on Domino for longer than a few hours. (And that there was a similar charm for Bloom to wear on the off-chance Obsidian was to be resurrected in the future.)

It was so strange, being inside of Castle Sparx. An overwhelming feeling of ‘ _I’ve been here before_ ’ and ‘ _This place is beautiful_ ’ just flooded into her system.

Even her dragon’s presence was more active, coiling inside of her and whispering bits of history into her ear as she looked the ballroom over.

The Melodian Orchestra was in full swing, Princess Galatea giving it her all with her bandmates. Her father conducting.

Lights and streamers were everywhere, people dancing and mingling.

She could hear the excitement from the Dominian nobles as they caught up with the nobles from Eraklyon and Solaria, the wonder as dark realm royals were allowed into the affair.

Former Company of Light members were there too, catching up on old times. (Valkyrie couldn’t help but smile at her mother chatting away with Alyssa and Magnethia, her normal disdain for such events washed away by her friends reconnecting. So much had changed…)

Even Hagen and Faragonda seemed to be getting along better, the two sharing a dance, acting as if they’d never been apart.

“It’s incredible, isn’t it?” Mirta’s laugh pulled her into the present, twirling about in the ballgown Stella had created for her. A strapless dress with a heart like black top that flared down into orange and gold flames at the skirt. Her red hair straightened to touch her shoulders.

Valkyrie grinned, giving a bow. “You look stunning, Mirta. And I’m sure Lucy will agree when she gets here.”

Mirta flushed, wrapping her arms around herself. “I hope so… I mean… I was worried this was too much but… Stella insisted.”

“Oh, Dahling… I’m seldom wrong when it comes to fashion.” Stella wrapped her arms around them both before giving a twirl to show off the creation she made for herself.

An off-the-shoulder ballgown that had a diagonal half of the top and skirt in blue and another in orange, and image of the sun and the moon meeting in the middle. Her blonde locks tied back in a braided bun. Elbow length blue gloves.

“You can try and sweet-talk all you want, Princess, but you’re not getting in me in one of those ballgown traps.” Valkyrie teased. Stella snorted, crossing her arms and pouting.

“Who said I’d want to waste my efforts on you anyway?” She gave a false sniffle. “I can do suits too… You know? Look at Sky and Brandon.” She gestured to the boys over at the punch bowl.

And… Okay. Valkyrie had to admit they did look nice in their Stella originals. Sky was wearing a touched up-traditional suit of Eraklyon, still in the standard blue and gold. Brandon had a golden colored suit, trimmed in blue, a bit of a play on Stella’s dress.

“Maybe I’ll let you suit me up next time.” Valkyrie conceded, giving a nod. “You did nicely with the boys.”

“Thank you.” Stella grinned. “And the girls look fabulous. Well… Aside from Bloom… I didn’t get to do hers, so I’m not sure how she’ll look.” She frowned. “I hope the Dominian stylist doesn’t make my girl look like a fool. I can and will end her career.”

“Lighten up, Stella. I’m sure Bloom’s going to look amazing.” Musa and Riven strolled over, arm-in-arm.

Musa’s ballgown wasn’t as bulky in appearance, more stream-lined and flowing. Ruffled at the top and along the edge of the skirt. A brilliant shade of cherry red dress and violet colored ruffles. Her dark hair done in a half-braid, half down style.

And Riven looked fairly good in a suit, his hair slicked back a bit. Valkyrie couldn’t help but tease him.

“What did you do to your hair?”

“I… Look, I’m trying to impress HB, okay?” He flushed. “He thought I looked nice.” Musa laughed.

“My dad already likes you, Riven. He just likes to mess with your head a little.” She kissed his cheek. “Here…” She went and ruffled his hair, the spikes coming back to life.

Riven grinned. “Now I look fantastic.” Stella snorted.

“Well… As fantastic as _you_ can.”

Valkyrie shook her head, looking to Mirta. “I’m going to duck out before these two start fighting… Did you happen to see Flora anywhere?”

“I think she’s with Layla and Nabu near the orchestra.” Mirta gestured a bit a way. “Just through there.”

“Thanks.” Valkyrie placed a hand on her shoulder. “If I see Lucy, I’ll send her your way.”

“You’d better.” Mirta winked, waving Valkyrie off.

She made her way to the orchestra, taking a moment to take in how amazing Flora looked. Petal pink ballgown with roses printed along the skirt trim, the green vines creating a web around Flora’s skirt. Her hair was done in twin rose buns, some of it left hanging loosely around her.

And Layla… Her curly locks were left to go as they pleased, dancing around her dress and fingers. Her ballgown was a sea-foam green, ruffled in places as if they were ocean waves caressing her skin. Nabu’s hand interlocked with hers.

“I do hate to break up this party, but I felt I needed to let my date know I made it.” Valkyrie teased, the wind knocking out of her as Flora pulled her tight.

“I knew you’d find a way to come!” She grinned, kissing her softly and turning to Layla. “And you worried the charm wouldn’t work.”

“I’m just saying… That Bartleby guy was trapped in a book for a while… He could have got his memories screwed up.” Layla shrugged, giving a smile to Valkyrie. “Glad you’re here though. Wouldn’t be the same without the whole gang.”

“Speaking of… Where are Tecna and Timmy? Or Crystal and Morgan? And Helia and Kota?” Valkyrie asked, looking around. (An arm still wrapped around Flora’s waist, the fairy’s presence calming her down as the ballroom became increasingly more crowded.)

Nabu gestured to a few tables at the corner. “I know Tecna and Timmy wanted to have a bit of a quiet space. Timmy’s tinnitus was starting to act up when the crowd started to pile in, so they’ve been over there.”

Timmy had his glasses off and Tecna was rubbing at his temples, her mouth moving. (But Valkyrie couldn’t make out what she was saying.)

Her dress looked nice. A reflective and shiny purple gown that seemed straight of the Zenithian runway. And Timmy’s blue suit was just precious. (If he weren’t miserable at the moment.) “Isn’t there a spell that could help?”

“There is… But it only lasts so long… And you can only use it so many times in a day without it doing even more damage.” Nabu frowned. “He’ll be okay soon… I’m sure.”

“I hope so. I’d hate for him to miss the royal family walk out.”

“I’m sure Tecna can get him back on his feet.” Flora nudged Valkyrie a bit. “And as for Morgan and Helia… I’d try the dance floor. Crystal and Kota were off talking to Tabitha and Celeste…”

“Sounds about right.” Valkyrie kissed Flora’s cheek. “Would you like a dance before the royal family makes their grand entrance?”

Flora’s eyes lit up, her fingers entwining with Valkyrie’s. “I’d love to.”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trumpets sounded; the room quietened down. A tall man with a full blonde beard stood, his chest puffed out and his hands behind his back. “Now presenting, for the first time in 18 years… The Royal Family of Domino! All hail King Oritel, Queen Marion, Princess Bloom, and Nymph Daphne Hannes!”

He stepped down as the applause started and quietened again, the room feeling the anticipation.

Oritel and Marion were the first ones down, slow and royal steps. Both done up in their regal attire, grins on their faces as they greeted their people and their friends.

Daphne was next. (Or, at least, Valkyrie assumed she was Daphne.)

The blonde looked different when she wasn’t in her Nymph form, her hair longer and done in a half-ponytail style. A ruffled jade ballgown with a halter style top gave her an air of confidence. A circlet adorning her head.

And Bloom. Valkyrie had never felt so much positive energy come from a person before. So much joy and happiness just radiating from her.

Her long red hair was stylized similar to how it was in her Enchantix. Her gown was strapless, main color was sky-blue, but a golden dragon adorned the skirt, coiled around it.

The applause was near deafening as the family made its way down, toasts shouted from across the room. Dances breaking out.

(A glorious occasion indeed.)

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flora had her arms wrapped Valkyrie, her front pressed against the witch’s back as they gazed at the stars. “I’ve never seen a sky so clear at night before…” Valkyrie was in awe of how the stars seemed to just sparkle and shine. Clear and bright and… So close but so far.

“Maybe Domino always had beautiful skies and they just… Came back?” Flora offered, gesturing to one of the brighter constellations. “Isn’t that the Dragon?”

“It is.” Valkyrie grinned, kissing Flora’s cheek. “And it’s by the Triton.” She gestured to the constellation beside it. “Both are usually so hard to see…”

“Must be the magic of Domino.” Valkyrie laughed.

“Probably.” She placed her hand over Flora’s, tracing over the slender fingers. “ShadowHaunt has a terrific view of the sky too, thanks to Stella’s sunroof.”

Flora giggled. “It also has a lovely garden that Morgan and I started.”

“And our gatorhounds…”

Valkyrie turned to face Flora, giving a bit of a wicked smile. “Thinking what I’m thinking?”

Flora cupped her cheek, kissing the witch softly. “First we need to tell the others goodbye… And then we’ll go.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.”


End file.
